Heroes of Rikkaidai
by Lahdolphin
Summary: No one knew who they were. They were the masked heroes of Rikkaidai – Demigod, Emperor, Master, Tensai, Iron Lung, Trickster, Gentleman, and Ace – and they were the only ones who could bring justice to the city. SUPERHERO-AU
1. Heroes of Rikkaidai

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis or anything mentioned in this story.**

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**Rikkaidai City, Southern District  
April 26, 21:47**

With a wave of his hand, Demigod sent the goon flying.

The man slammed into the brick wall and screamed as though the air had been ripped from his lungs. He slumped against the ground, coughed, and then passed out. The gun he had been holding floated through the air towards Demigod. The hero emptied the bullets into his hands, put them in his utility belt, tossed the gun to the opposite side of the bleak alley, and looked for his partners.

Emperor was tying up two men with the help of Master. Gentleman was high in the sky, scanning the area for any stragglers. Tensai, Iron Lung, Trickster, and Ace were walking towards him each carrying multiple guns. They tossed the empty guns carelessly next to the one Demigod had just unloaded.

"How many total?" Demigod asked.

"Six, all from Seigaku," Tensai answered.

Demigod nodded. Seigaku, Rikkaidai City's largest underground mob, was becoming more active. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

Gentleman flew down, landing silently. "The police are coming," he reported. "They're six blocks away."

Master approached the group; Emperor following behind him, lugging six unconscious men who had been tied together with steel cord salvaged from the alley. Emperor set the group of men to the side with ease, crossing his arms as he joined the circle his teammates had formed.

"The police chief will want to talk to us," Emperor reasoned. "He'll try to make us take off our masks again."

"I hate cops and all they're damn rules," Ace muttered. He looked at Emperor. "No offense, Mr. Detective."

Emperor did take offense because that was who he was when he didn't wear his mask. He was a homicide detective, one of the youngest in city history. He would agree that sometimes laws and regulations got in the way, but they kept the streets clean when the heroes couldn't because they had lives, normal lives.

They were vigilantes, normal people who contracted powers from a nuclear explosion as children. They had been taken by a secret organization, experimented on for eight years, but then they escaped. They learned that their once peaceful city had become violent, and they knew they were the only ones capable of cleaning it up.

No one knew who they were. They were the masked heroes of Rikkaidai – Demigod, Emperor, Master, Tensai, Iron Lung, Trickster, Gentleman, and Ace – and they were the only ones who could bring justice to the city.

Sirens roared in the distance, approaching quickly. The heroes looked at one another through their domino masks.

"We have to go," Master said. "The police can handle the criminals without us."

Demigod looked at the unconscious goons. He had wanted a chance to interrogate them, possibly take them back to the warehouse and figure out why Seigaku men were roaming outside their territory. But he didn't have time.

"Agreed," Demigod said ruefully. He reached into his silver utility belt and pulled out a small remote with a yellow button. The others did the same, each holding the remote at their side.

The cop cars rounded the corner and officers ran down the alley, closing in on them.

The heroes pressed the buttons.

Then, they were gone.

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**A/N: I will be completely honest: this story will not get my full attention and may never be updated. Any preceding chapters will be long and could contain OCs, male/male, male/female, etc... The rating may change to M at some point. I have not written the next chapter and it may never come. My advice is that if this idea interests you, alert, and see what happens.  
**

**Feedback is loved :)**


	2. Rikkaidai City

**The Warehouse  
April 28, 13:32**

Yukimura entered the warehouse at the corner of town at the end of a rundown street. The first floor appeared vacant – the cement floor cracked, the brick walls faded – but Yukimura knew better. He pressed his finger to a pad next to the elevator, verifying his identity, and took the elevator to the fourth floor. It creaked and hesitated, but the machine moved on, and he stepped out into the converted loft.

The ceilings were high, the floor was wood, the walls were brick, the windows ran from floor to ceiling, and steel beams protruded in the middle of the open area. The kitchen was pressed into the corner next to a door leading to a balcony. A spiral staircase led up to a small second floor with a series of doors; the floor was not complete, and someone could look over the railing down at the kitchen and common room.

Music drifted out of Marui's room, smoke out of Niou's. Jackal was at work, but left a note in the kitchen saying he would bring home any leftovers. Yagyuu was typing a schedule on his laptop on the balcony. Kirihara was sitting at a table with a box of pizza and the calendar they hung on the fridge, marking the days he had work. Yanagi and Sanada were sitting on the large sofa that sat in front of an enormous television. Yukimura tossed his book bag onto the ground by the staircase, and wondered over to the sofa.

"How was class?" Yanagi asked as Yukimura sat down on the far end of the sofa. Yukimura waved his hand. The remote fluttered out of Yanagi's hand and into Yukimura's.

"Fine," Yukimura replied. He flipped through the channels, stopping on a news channel. He saw the same scene he had while walking home from class. A young, pretty woman was standing to the side of the screen.

"_Local politicians are banning together to sign a bill that will reduce crime rates by ten percent over the next five years,"_ the woman said. _"Increase funding for the police department, new security systems donated by Atobe Corp., and improved prison cells are a few of the bill's conditions. The signing will take place April 30th at seven-pm at City Hall."_

Yukimura changed the channel without pressing a button on the remote. The screen changed to a nature documentary on orangutans and poachers. The orange primate screeched.

Yanagi reached over and plucked the remote from Yukimura's fingers. He switched on a medical drama, but the channel changed back to the documentary. Yanagi looked at Yukimura, who had stretched out on the sofa, arms crossed, legs propped up on the cushions.

"You're being childish," Yanagi said.

"I didn't touch the remote," Yukimura replied innocently. "I think the TV wants to show us monkeys."

"No powers in the common room," Sanada ordered.

"I know," Yukimura said. The smell of the smoke that rolled out of Niou's room made Yukimura wrinkle his nose. "Does he have to do that in his room? The lab is right downstairs. What is he making anyways?"

"I don't believe he is attempting to make anything in particular," Yanagi said. "He's bored. The bar is being renovated. Until construction is done, he has nothing to do."

Yukimura looked at the television, and even though Yanagi had the remote, Yukimura turned up the volume, the shrieks of the orangutan's getting louder, louder, louder. He could do things with his mind, move things, control objects – it was called telekinesis.

Rather, it was one of the things Demigod could do. They agreed not to use their powers unless it was under the cover of a mask. Yukimura never cared for that rule.

"If you two can't decide on a show, put the news back on," Sanada murmured.

Yanagi changed the channel with the remote. Another reporter, one who handled city politics, was discussing the bill mentioned earlier to lower crime rates.

"The mobs won't be happy about that bill," Yukimura said gravely. "If the police department gets more funding, they'll be more cops in the eastern district."

"Everyone on the force is on the edge of their seats," Sanada mentioned. "My partner is worried we're going to be dealing with fewer dead civilians and more dead cops."

"It needs to be done. We can't help all the time and the people need to be protected," Yanagi stated.

"I'm not disagreeing," Yukimura began, "I'm just saying things are going to be rough if City Council signs on. I don't think my grades can take any more all-nighters."

They must have been talking louder than they thought because Kirihara had walked over and plopped down on the sofa next to Sanada with a piece of pizza in his hand.

"Nakano hasn't even contacted us – well, the other us – about it yet," Kirihara said, referring to the bill. "I thought he finally trusted us."

"He'll never trust us," Sanada replied firmly. "And neither will Police Chief Fukuda. He's made it very clear that any officer who is caught aiding us will be fired on the spot."

Kirihara rolled his eyes. "He's a baby."

"You shouldn't speak badly about the mayor or the police chief," Yanagi chastised. "I've analyzed all police report and Mayor Nakano's bills, and all evidence suggests they are trying their best to help the people."

"Fat load of help they gave us," Kirihara muttered. "Eight kids go missing and they didn't even look."

"Go to your room," Yukimura ordered.

"You're not my father, and I'm not a child. I'm twenty-four years old!"

Yukimura waved his hand; Kirihara flew to his feet, his piece of pizza floating back into his box in the kitchen. Yukimura gave him a stern look, and eventually the young man stormed off. Yukimura didn't do anything when Kirihara headed to the elevator instead of the staircase because he was probably going to the gym. Maybe he would have sense enough spare with that training robot Marui and Niou built last month and get in some practice.

Yukimura changed the channel back to the nature documentary. Sanada stood up and left. Yanagi sighed and gave up, deciding it wouldn't harm him to know a bit more about orangutans.

.

**Rikkaidai City Police Headquarters  
April 29, 7:05**

Sanada woke up at six sharp. He showered, dressed in his usual attire – a crisp shirt with black slacks – and went down to the kitchen. He grabbed a quick breakfast, and then headed off to work. He did the same every day like clockwork. He change in his routine was strange. He hardly even had a day off.

In Rikkaidai, there were two major mobs. Fudomine was based in the west. Seigaku was based in the east, but had been straying south into residential areas. It was risky to say the least. The police headquarters was located in the south, along with the university and many major businesses. Mix that with mob activity, and you have a heap of trouble.

Up north was off limits. It would be for many years to come. The north used to be the location of the nuclear power plant that fueled the city. Then, it blew up, taking the lives of hundreds of people. The town spread into a downward spiral after that. Crime rates went up, unemployment was reaching record percentages, and more and more people died every year in mob related deaths.

It was Sanada's job to help put those murderers behind bars. He was a homicide detective, one of the youngest in the city's history at only twenty-five.

He arrived at work at seven. It looked as though a teenager had dumped the contents of their book bag onto his desk. It happened every morning – new cases came in, reports needed to be filled out, and memos came in.

Sanada leaned back in his chair, and let out a heavy sigh. Just then, someone clamped a hand on his shoulder. Sanada knew who it was immediately. He swatted the hand away, ignoring the laugh that followed. It was his partner, Kobayashi Riku.

Kobayashi was only in his mid-thirties, but his face was riddled with lines and had cresses around his eyes. Most were from laughter, but some were from the toil of his profession. His pants were clean and pressed, his ironed striped shirt dotted with specks of powdered sugar from his breakfast. He had a silver ring on his left hand – fifteen years of marriage, and probably many more to come.

Kobayashi sat down at his desk, which was opposite of Sanada's. Unlike Sanada's desk, which looked like it had been hit by a hailstorm of tornados, Kobayashi's desk was clean. His computer sat in the corner next to a picture of his wife, a small stack of reports to the side, and a Rikkaidai City Police mug full of pens.

Kobayashi wiped the powdered sugar off his shirt, and then looked at Sanada's desk.

"Damn, looks like you have a busy day," Kobayashi muttered.

"We have a busy day," Sanada corrected. He picked up a stack of folders and papers, tossing them onto Kobayashi's desk. "And how come everything always ends up on my desk and not yours?"

"I smile." Kobayashi smiled brightly, his face wrinkling slightly, just to prove his point. "See? You should try it."

Sanada didn't respond. He was too busy reading a case file. A politician had been found dead inside City Hall, shot execution style. Sanada recognized his name; it was all over the news lately. The politician had been a major supporter of Mayor Nakano's new bill to reduce crime rates. He had convinced several members of the city council to sign it.

"Sanada." Kobayashi's voice pulled Sanada out of his concentration. The older man reached across their desks, plucking the file from his partner's hands. He spotted the name, and then whistled. "I voted for him in the last election. Good man. Good man..."

Sanada could sense Kobayashi was upset. Sanada never understood that side of his partner. He was strictly professional – as Sanada Genchirou, homicide detective, and Emperor, masked hero.

"Our suspect list is every convicted criminal in the city," Sanada said, bringing Kobayashi back to the case.

"This guy helped make a big bust possible two months ago," Kobayashi added. "Fifteen Fudomine guys got locked up because he convinced the judge to sign the warrant."

"Fudomine doesn't do shootings," Sanada said, dismissing the idea. "Their signature is knives."

"Right, right." Kobayashi nodded once, and set the file down. "Seigaku uses guns, but so do small gangs. It could have been a drug dealer who didn't want his business busted. The guy was alone in City Hall; anyone could have walked in."

"Seigaku's been trying to expand."

"How the hell do you know that?"

He knew from his duties as Emperor, but Sanada couldn't say that. Kobayashi could never know. Police Chief Fukuda could never know. Fifteen years ago, Sanada and the others had been taken because of their powers. If their identities were revealed, enemies would hunt down their friends, they would be taken again.

Sanada couldn't let anyone on their team fall into that situation.

"My informant has been doing some grunt work for some of Seigaku's lower level goons," Sanada lied. "He doesn't know much, but Seigaku's getting in more gun shipments and taking on more men. If that's not expansion, I don't know what is."

"You have the best damn CIs," Kobayashi said, almost jealous. "Okay. So Seigaku's on the move. Figuring this bill wouldn't help them do that. They decide to kill a politician to scare other City Council members out of signing the bill. Problem is we can't take down an entire mob that easily. If we could, we would have done so already."

Just then, Kobayashi's computer beeped, signaling an email had just arrived. The detective checked it, his thick eyebrows pressing together in concentration.

"Your wife?" Sanada questioned.

His partner shook his head. "No. I'm subscribed to the _Rikkaidai Post_'s blog."

"And?"

"The mayor just made a statement regarding the murder of our politician," Kobayashi explained. Then, he began to read straight from the email: "'Despite the recent tragedy, Mayor Nakano has been reported saying the bill will be signed as scheduled. He farther states that this is proof the city is in desperate need of reform, and that no life should go to waste.'"

Kobayashi pulled away from his computer screen, letting out a heavy sigh. "Sometimes, I wonder if the city might be better off if we could skip all this political bull and just lock those bastards behind bars."

Sanada agreed, but he kept his mouth shut.

.

**The Warehouse  
20:43**

Sanada stepped out of the rigidity elevator and into the common room. The scent of spices drifted from the kitchen where Jackal was cooking something that made Sanada's saliva glands kick in. Marui and Kirihara were playing some sort of shooter game on the television; the sounds it was producing were so real it gave Sanada goosebumps.

He walked over to the stairs to go up to his room and shower, but stopped when he heard Yukimura's voice.

"_Everyone, please report to the basement."_

An intercom system had been set up throughout the warehouse with the exception of the first floor, which was empty besides security cameras and the elevator. When they renovated the warehouse, each floor was designed for a specific purpose. The fourth and fifth floors were converted into a living space. The third floor became a gym, the second floor a lab, and the basement became the cliché superhero HQ.

Sanada pivoted immediately, walking towards the elevator. He pressed his finger to the thumb pad. Once his identity was verified, he stepped inside. Marui, Kirihara and Jackal joined them. Niou and Yagyuu had come down from their rooms, and joined the others on the elevator.

The elevator took them down the basement in seconds. The doors hissed open, and the men stepped out. It wasn't so much a basement as a huge underground bunker complete with high tech computers, safety rooms, teleportation pads, and a million other things stored beneath their feet. The floors were made of impenetrable steel, as were the walls.

Yukimura and Yanagi were standing in front of the largest computer screen, which was used as a communicator. The largest screen showed the image of whoever was calling them, and the small screens surrounding it showed the person's biography, location, and the biographies of anyone mentioned by their legal name. It had taken Yanagi, Niou, and Marui three months to create the system, which surpassed the abilities of the government's strongest super computer.

At the moment, the communicator showed Mayor Nakano in his office at City Hall. He was forty-five years old with a smile that made it impossible for people to hate him. His dark hair was beginning to gray, and his suit was crisp and flawless.

The beauty of the communicator was that the heroes could see and hear the person contacting them, while the one contacting them saw a black screen with the Rikkaidai City emblem in the center. Their voices were distorted as well, making it impossible to identify them by voice alone, but allowed for them to be distinguished from one another.

"What do you need, Mayor?" Yukimura asked as the others gathered behind him.

"I'm sure you are aware of my current situation," Nakano said, getting straight to the point. "I have discussed the possibility of the city council being attacked tomorrow night during the signing of the bill. Police Chief Fukuda has assured me that his best men will be present, and Atobe Corp. is setting up a system as I speak. But I do not trust them. I want the heroes of Rikkaidai present tomorrow."

"You don't trust us," Kirihara snapped. "Why should we help you?"

"Please excuse Ace. Seigaku's actions have put us on edge," Yukimura said.

"I understand you're hesitation, but I believe you understand mine. No one knows your true identities. It is hard to trust men whose faces you do not know," Nakano admitted. "Regardless, your group is an asset to this city. Your presence tomorrow will assure anyone who doubts your motives that you believe in this city and are here to help us."

Silence. Then:

"We will be present tomorrow at the signing," Yukimura promised.

Yukimura pressed a button on the keyboard. On Nakano's end, the city emblem would disappear, leaving a black screen. To the heroes, the image of Nakano was frozen. The communicator automatically saved and stored all conversations until farther notice.

Yukimura turned to his teammates.

"Cancel any plans for tomorrow from six-pm to morning," Yukimura ordered. "Be suited up and ready by six thirty."

In unison, the others replied, "Yes, sir."

.

**City Hall  
April 30, 18:57**

City Hall was located in the center of the southern district across from the city park. It was a giant block of white that had been molded into a building that stood tall even in the darkest of times. The Rikkaidai City flag flew above the building.

High above the flag was Gentleman, pressing his finger to the corner of his domino mask. The white lenses adjusted, zooming in and out, allowing him to see everyone entering and exiting City Hall.

Trickster stood next to the columns by the entrance, invisible to the naked eye.

Ace, Tensai and Iron Lung were stationed inside in the great hall, hidden in the shadows.

Master, Emperor and Demigod were in the council room, standing behind Mayor Nakano's podium next to Fukuda. Behind them was a line of windows. Police officers circled the room, but the politicians were not whispering about their presence as they were the heroes'. Reporters filled the back of the room, one of which Demigod recognized, a young brunette who he knew as Yukimura. She had no idea that it was Yukimura Seiichi behind that mask. She could never know.

"Three minutes until the meeting begins," Fukuda stated. He pressed his earpiece, and then put his hand behind his back, clasping his hands together. "My men report no signs of Seigaku."

"I'm certain your men are doing a fine job," Demigod said flatly. "But I trust my men more. Master."

Master closed his eyes, putting a finger to his head. Demigod heard a small zing, and realized he would never get used to that sound, no matter how many times Master established a telepathic connection with the other members of the team.

"_Report,"_ Demigod ordered mentally.

"_Three black motorcycles located fifty yards south of City Hall," _Gentleman reported.

His voice was so clear and loud it was as if he were standing right next to Demigod, and that was Master's doing. Gentleman was in the sky, still searching for anything out of the ordinary. Gentleman thought, and Demigod heard it. If Demigod was ever to be jealous of the power of another member of their team, it would be Master's telepathy.

"_Clear out front," _Trickster added.

"_Iron Lung says we're clear," _Tensai thought.

"_I did not,"_ Iron Lung argued.

"_They won't stop fighting,"_ Ace whined mentally. _"Next time, I get to protect the mayor."_

"_Telepathic link will be extinguished," _Master reported._ "Three, two, one –"_

Master lowered his hand and opened his eyes. Demigod heard that screeching zing, and then his mind was his and his alone once more.

The doors to the room opened, and the mayor walked in dressed in a pinstripe suit with a blue tie. The City Council members stood from their seats, which made Nakano smile. He walked around the podium at the far end of the room, nodded to Fukuda and then to the heroes. Then, he took his place in front of the council.

"Please, sit," Nakano said with a smile. "This is not a day to be formal and rigid. This is a day to celebrate. Today marks the beginning of a new era for Rikkaidai City. For too long criminals have plagued the streets and harmed our fellow citizens. But today that ends. Today, we begin the process to take back our city."

The applause that followed was blocked out by the sound of shattering glass. Two cans rolled on either side of the podium, exploding into a mass of thick smoke. The heroes reached up and tapped the corner of their domino masks, the whites turning red. The smoke made it impossible to see, but with infrared lenses, they could see the heat signatures of everyone in the room.

As everyone rushed to leave the room, two red figures crawled through the window. In the distance stood another figure.

"Fukuda, get the mayor," Demigod ordered calmly. "We'll take care of these guys."

Fukuda probably didn't know who Demigod was talking about, but Demigod didn't know either. Blobs of red didn't make for accurate identification. It wasn't until he heard a hiss that he knew who it was.

"Viper's here," Demigod said, knowing Master and Emperor were by his side. "That means Doctor or Smash is with him. Cover me. I'm going to move the smoke."

One made a move for Demigod, but they made the wrong choice. Emperor stepped in front of his leader, and stretched out his arm, grabbing the man by the back of his head. Emperor shoved him down into the ground with inhuman strength. The wood floor cracked when the man made contact.

Demigod concentrated, and stretched his arms outward so they were parallel with the ground. He opened his palms, and felt the air in the room shift around him. When he opened his eyes, the smoke had cleared. He turned off the infrared just in time to see Smash rushing towards him with a black mask running across his face.

Demigod extended his hand. That was all it took to send Smash crashing back through the window he came. Demigod looked down at the ground where Viper's unconscious body was embedded into a crevice Emperor had created. With a wave of the hand, Viper was out the window.

"Why didn't you capture them?" Fukuda asked immediately. He must have grabbed onto Mayor Nakano when ordered to, because he had to let go of the mayor's wrist to storm over to the heroes. "Viper and Smash are two of Zero's most trusted men!"

"Look outside," Demigod said.

Fukuda walked between Master and Emperor, looking out the shattered windows. Viper was being lifted to his feet by Smash and another man in a black mask that ran across his eyes. The masked man grinned, his free hand holding a gun at his side.

"That's Devil. He is as strong as Zero, the man in charge of the Seigaku mob," Master explained. "Do you want to fight with a sadist who has a loaded gun and ten knives hidden on his person?"

Fukuda turned, facing the heroes with a sneer.

"Now," Demigod began, turning towards the mayor, "Mayor Nakano, I believe this meeting is over. We could escort you home if you would like."

"No," Nakano replied quickly. "This meeting is not over until this bill has been signed."

The mayor turned, facing the remaining council members, who slowly began to take their seats. At the archway on the far side of the room stood Gentleman, Trickster, Tensai, Iron Lung, and Ace. The heroes ushered in the members who had had time to flee, and then stood silently, their hands locked behind their backs.

The mayor took his place behind the podium, wiping glass off of its surface. The heroes took their place behind him – the following morning, that picture would be on the front page of the _Rikkaidai Post_.

.

Once the bill was signed, council members were escorted home by police officers. Fukuda retired, not even offering a statement to the reporters who plagued the great hall. Eventually, everyone had left the council room except for the mayor and the heroes.

"I am in your debt," the mayor said, offering his hand to Demigod.

Demigod took his hand, shaking it briefly before pulling his gloved hand back to his person. "Your wife and son will be in great danger."

"When aren't we in danger?" the mayor asked, smiling. "Besides, I already have someone taking care of that. Atobe Corp. offered to install our house with their best system tomorrow morning."

"It seems everything is in order, then," Demigod said. He pulled a small remote out of his utility belt, his thumb lingering over the yellow button as he held it at his side. "You know how to contact us."

"Thank you."

The mayor blinked. When he opened his eyes, every single hero was gone.

* * *

**A/N: Still getting through a lot of the necessary introductions and adjusting to writing action scenes. Police Chief Fukuda and Mayor Nakano will be appearing in later chapters. There is another OC who I am introducing in a later chapter (possibly 6) that will appear repeatedly (the female reporter Yukimura recognized). Once I get through all the intro stuff, there will be more of the heroes and more on their back stories and dynamics as a team.**

**I didn't know how to describe the basement, but think of it as the Bat Cave only more modern. As for the domino masks, they're basically everything combined – binoculars, heat sensors, x-ray, night-vision, etc... Characters will be referred to by their hero name when their mask is on, and by their real name when it's off.**


	3. Hero Heroine

**Rikkaidai University  
May 6, 9:34**

Yukimura smiled at the girl sitting across from him, Mori Haruka. She was a pretty girl if Yukimura thought about it. She had freckles that ran across the bridge of her nose and hazel eyes that viewed the world through her camera lens.

There was nothing unusual about her, which is why Yukimura enjoyed her company. He had spent his life around extraordinarily unusual people. The idea of spending time with someone so usual – someone without powers – was pleasant.

The smell of coffee and tea engulfed them as they picked each others minds. They had several classes together since they were both going after the same graduate degree – literature. They often studied together at the campus coffee shop, and over time Yukimura had learned quite a bit about being normal. He had learned quite a bit about her.

For one, she insisted on sitting outside under the umbrellas because spring was full of vivid colors, and she could not pass up the chance to take a picture of roses. She had a photographer's eye; she always saw the smaller things. Currently, her camera was sitting on the tiled table, but her sharp eyes were not looking for her next shot. They were on Yukimura.

"Watch this." The sugar container slid across the table when Yukimura moved his hand. Mori laughed, a smile filling her freckled face.

"That's amazing!" she exclaimed. "You have to tell me how you do that. My cousin _loves_ magic."

Yukimura's smile was hidden behind his mug. "A magician never reveals his secrets."

"I'll figure it out one day. I have my ways."

She could never know. Anyone who knew who he really was besides his teammates became a weakness, a liability. He didn't want Mori to get hurt because of his foolishness, because he had powers, because he was Demigod.

"So what are you doing for your current events article this week?" Mori asked curiously. "I'm doing the standard Demigod-and-partners."

"I'm working on the oil spill," Yukimura replied. He furrowed his brow in confusion. "I thought you were working on that article for your job."

"Our professor said I could turn in my article for a grade, and my boss doesn't really care as long as the newspaper gets to published it first. The only problem is that there are almost no pictures of the heroes to go with the story."

Mori worked part-time as a criminal reporter for the _Rikkaidai Post_. The paper was able to publish twice a day if needed, and had an online version that was updated hourly, spreading important news quickly. In a city like Rikkaidai, updates on criminal activity could save lives.

Mori made good money for her articles; she used her pay to pay the rent on the apartment she shared with her friend and her tuition. She was one of the many who believed in Demigod and what the heroes stood for. While many of the _Post_'s criminal reporters focused on the mishaps the heroes had, Mori always focused on the brighter side.

Yukimura nodded, taking another sip of his tea. "I see."

"I just need one good shot," she continued. "All the ones on file have been overused."

"Maybe you could ask them?" Yukimura suggested with an innocent smile.

"I bet they'd think I'm a Seigaku spy or something."

"Or something."

Yukimura took a sip of his tea, setting his mug back down. When he looked at Mori, her hazel eyes were locked on him in a calculating gaze. Sometimes, Yukimura wondered if she knew. He wondered if she knew and didn't ask because she didn't want it to be true.

"Something on my face?" Yukimura questioned.

"No," she answered, shaking her head slightly. Her brown hair moved with her head until she froze, just looking at him. "Just you. You just say some strange things sometimes. You act like the heroes are human."

"Aren't they?"

"They're superhuman. No one knows who they are. Maybe they're not even from earth." She picked up her mug. "It doesn't really matter, I guess. They're taking care of us. Like guardian angels."

Yukimura smiled. Mori smiled back.

.

**The Warehouse  
12:13**

Yukimura was stretched out on the sofa, flipping through the channels with a small wave of his hands – a nature documentary, medical drama, cooking show, sci-fi movie, another cooking show – and stopped on the news. Mayor Nakano was in the council room at City Hall holding a press conference.

"_We have finished installing our new security system in the south district," _Mayor Nakano said into the microphone. _"I am meeting with the owner of the Atobe Corporation this afternoon to finalize the plans for the system in the west district."_

"_What about the east district?"_ a reporter called out. _"Will the presence of the Seigaku mob affect the installation of the security system?"_

"_Will the heroes will called upon?" _another reported asked.

"_The heroes have not been called in to assist with the installation,"_ Nakano answered. _"However, if we meet resistance, we will do whatever is necessary to finish installing the system for the sake of the residents in the remaining districts."_

Yukimura turned off the television, shifting on the sofa so he was staring up at the high ceiling with his hands behind his head. He had researched Atobe Corp. years ago, and found it to be a completely legitimate organization. The CEO Atobe Keigo, a young man who had just recently inherited his father's fortune, had no major marks on his record – at least, nothing out of the ordinary.

Despite that he still felt uneasy about the new security measures. Perhaps it was because he had seen firsthand what Seigaku and Fudomine were capable of when aggravated. If the cops entered their territory, there would causalities. But was it worth risking lives now to save lives in the future? Could Mayor Nakano and Police Chief Fukuda honestly say they were alright with giving up one life to save dozens, maybe more?

No. That was not okay. When Yukimura created Demigod he also created a strict moral code. No life was worth more than another. He could not – _would_ not kill – any man, even someone as twisted as Zero, the leader of the Seigaku mob. He certainly could not sit by and watch the mayor and police chief send innocent men to their deaths.

He sat up and turned his head towards the kitchen. He stood up and walked over instead of getting something telekinetically. It was difficult to manipulate objects if he could not see them. Even if he knew where an object was, it put strain on his mind. Yanagi had attempted to find the limitations of his powers several years ago to no avail. It was as if Yukimura's powers were limitless if he was willing to risk his mind in the process.

When he opened the refrigerator, the elevator stopped and the doors screeched open. Kirihara stepped out, the faint smell of cheese and fries clinging to the red polo he wore for work. He came into the kitchen and reached past Yukimura to grab a bottle of water.

"Am I on patrol tonight?" Kirihara asked as he leaned against the counter.

"Yes," Yukimura answered. He pulled out a container of yogurt with one hand, the other waving. A drawer opened and a spoon floated into his hand. "All of us are going out. I don't like the idea of cops roaming mob districts."

"That new bill is causing more problems than it solves."

"Politicians think long term. What happens in-between is left to us."

"Suit up by ten?"

Yukimura nodded, spoon in his mouth. Kirihara kicked away from the counter, and headed towards the spiral staircase to go up to his room so he could change. When he got to the top, he put his hands on the railings and shouted down to the floor below.

"Wanna spare later?"

"I won't go easy on you."

"Wasn't planning on it."

"Ten minutes. I'll meet you in the gym."

.

The elevator doors pried opened, allowing Yukimura to step out onto the third floor, the gym. The gym was always the hottest floor of the warehouse, and could make sweat bead on your forehead within seconds. The floor was modernized with the latest equipment, including a fully function android Niou and Marui had created.

The machine was silver, and lacked clothes and hair, but resembled a human. It had several thousand scenarios, and proved to be the best sparring partner. Its resistance, strength and speed could be adjusted, allowing for Sanada to spare with something that his super strength wouldn't crush. It even gave Jackal a run for his money, and Jackal was invincible. It "lost" the match when one or more vital points had been hit with a significant amount of force or when it was knocked out of the electronic ring in the center of the room; it was limited to that circle.

Niou and Marui had named it SAM – simulated assault machine.

Currently, Kirihara was standing in front of the android, hopping on the balls of his feet to avoid its arms and legs. Kirihara didn't punch back, just dodged SAM's attacks. He wore tight black pants and a tight sleeveless shirt to replicate the movement his suit allowed. Their hero suits were like second skins; it only made sense to train like that.

Yukimura waved his hand, flipping a switch on SAM. The robot froze, limbs retreating to their standing positions – sleep mode. Kirihara turned to face his leader. Sweat poured down his face. Yukimura could already feel beads beginning to form on his forehead.

"What's the current score?" Yukimura asked as he stepped forward.

"Three-hundred-seventy-six to zero," Kirihara replied. "But I'll beat you. I've been practicing."

Yukimura knew Kirihara trained without the others, snuck down into the gym in the middle of the night, woke up early to run on the treadmills on the far side of the gym. Kirihara would never stop trying to be better. Yukimura just wished it was for different reasons. Kirihara trained to defeat Yanagi, Sanada, and Yukimura, but he should have been training to protect the city.

Yukimura stepped forward into the electronic circle. Another wave of his hand, and SAM moved to the edge of the circle. He stood opposite of Kirihara, and waited.

"No powers," Kirihara said.

"I won't need them."

Kirihara bolted forward.

Kirihara swung his fist, but Yukimura squatted to the ground before it made contact. In one swift motion, he swung out his leg, knocking Kirihara to the ground.

"You're still too aggressive," Yukimura said as he stood up. "You leave yourself open."

Kirihara snapped out his leg, catching Yukimura's ankle. Yukimura moved with the sweeping motion of Kirihara's leg to avoid being knocked down. The younger man pulled his leg back and jumped up to his feet, his hands balled into fists in front of him.

The two circled each other, their footsteps practiced and familiar. Yukimura wouldn't make a move, Kirihara knew that. Yukimura was strong, stronger than he would admit, but his true strength was not physical combat. Yukimura's strength lied in his mental powers. "If they can't hit you, they can't kill you," his leader always said. "You just have to wait."

Kirihara came forward, his movements straightforward and readable. Yukimura dodged them all, managing two blows to Kirihara's torso. The second blow made Kirihara stumble, but he got right back in it with a kick to Yukimura's hip. The longer they moved, the stronger Kirihara got, the faster his punches flew, the wilder his eyes looked.

Kirihara's next swing wasn't as easy to avoid. Yukimura blocked it with his arm. Pain blossomed in his arm, tingling as deep as his bones. Any other person's bones would have snapped in half at that pressure, that inhuman strength.

Kirihara was losing control over his powers.

"I think we should stop," Yukimura suggested.

"Why? Scared you're going to lose?"

Kirihara swung another fist, harder, faster than the others. Yukimura waved his hand, and Kirihara's arm twisted around his back where it was joined by his other seconds later.

"Calm down," Yukimura ordered. He stepped forward to Kirihara, who was thrashing against his invisible restraints. Yukimura placed the pads of his middle fingers against his temples, his eyes unwavering. "Calm down." He closed his eyes and focused. "_Calm down_."

Yukimura saw images in his mind, memories that were not his own. He searched through Kirihara's mind, looking for the source of his anger, and moved it back into his unconscious. He moved the losses, the nightmare from last night, and everything else out of Kirihara's current thoughts.

Eventually, Kirihara stopped thrashing, his muscle relaxing. His eyes fluttered shut for a moment and he fell forward into Yukimura, who moved his arms to catch him. It was like his entire body had lost its tension, like he was nothing more than jell-o. If it weren't for his bones, he would have fallen to the floor like goo.

"Maybe I over did it," Yukimura mumbled. "Are you okay?"

"'m fine." Kirihara lazily moved his hands onto Yukimura's arms and pushed back, standing by himself. He looked like a sleepy child. "You said no powers."

"You need to learn to control your strength," Yukimura retorted. "You nearly broke my arm."

"Sorry?" Kirihara smiled hopefully, but couldn't seem to hold the muscles in place. He grabbed his head, closing his eyes. "Please don't do that again."

Yukimura smiled gently. "Hopefully I won't have to."

Kirihara opened his eyes. "I guess that makes the score three-hundred-seventy-seven to zero."

"The score doesn't matter. As long as you survive, you win."

"But it'd be nice to beat you, and I will. One day."

Yukimura kept smiling. "One day."

.

**Rikkaidai City, Southern District  
23:46**

They had finished patrol in near-record time. The threat of security cameras did increase criminal activity in all three districts, but the increase in cops seemed to keep it in balance. Tensai and Iron Lung stopped a man from getting a little handsy with a woman. Master stopped a man from mugging a student coming home from the library. Any other disturbances were covered by the cops, who seemed more efficient than ever with the help of the new security cameras.

Atobe Corp. had installed cameras on the streetlights and corners of major buildings. Master said that nearly every inch of the southern district would be covered. Tensai squatted on the corner of a building, gripped the edges, and flipped his top half over the edge. He stared into the camera, and grinned.

"Stop it," Iron Lung said, yanking his teammate back up.

Tensai rolled his eyes behind his mask. He looked at the other heroes on the roof. Demigod, Emperor, and Master were exchanging looks, their dialogue contained within Master's telepathic link.

"Do you ever think Master looks deeper into our minds than he should?" Tensai asked the others quietly. "I bet he does."

"He better not," Trickster muttered, arms crossed.

Suddenly, Demigod turned towards the others.

"Return to base," he ordered. "Master, Emperor, and I will do one last sweep of this district and then join you."

"We have the rest of the night off?" Ace asked.

"Wait. Does that mean we can _sleep_?" Tensai asked eagerly.

"Trickster and you are to hack into the new security system," Demigod said. "Ace, Gentleman, and Iron Lung may retire for the night."

Tensai groaned. "That's not fair. Why do I always get stuck hacking? I'm a super genius, not a computer nerd. That's Trickster's job."

"_Go_!" Emperor barked.

The five heroes reached into their utility belts and pulled out their remotes. They clicked the buttons, and teleported into the warehouse basement. Once they were gone, Demigod turned to Master and Emperor.

"Perimeter only," Demigod said, reaffirming what they had discussed mentally moments ago. The other two nodded once.

Then, they were off.

Demigod propelled himself from building to building telekinetically. Emperor jumped by using his super strength. Master had created a mechanism that allowed for him to disrupt gravity for a few seconds, just enough time to jump to the next building top.

The first time the heroes that donned their masks and taken off, people thought they were animals. For weeks there were sightings of creatures that disappeared into the night. Even when they were identified as humans, no one wanted to trust them. The police labeled them as outlawed vigilantes. They were strangers, freaks with powers who wore masks.

They'd been heroes for nearly five years, and each night felt like the first. They still felt that rush, that ball of something in their gut that told them this was the right thing to do. No matter what other people would say, they would always be out there, just like the first night. No matter what.

They raced across the rooftops on the outer rim of the southern district where tall buildings and apartments turned into suburbs. Then to the edge of the eastern and western districts. Nothing. Nothing at all. All clear.

It was strange.

On their way back to the center of the southern district, Demigod realized why it was strange. They weren't alone.

It started when he saw the red light. Demigod skidded to a stop in the middle of a building, and thrust his arms out to his sides. Master and Emperor froze midair, and were tossed down to the rooftop.

A bullet zoomed through the air above Emperor's body. Demigod moved his arm, and sent the bullet back to its point of origin. Master and Emperor stood up; pressing their backs to Demigod's to form a triangle.

A figure appeared from the shadows, legs in the air. The man twisted forward so he was standing on his feet and not his hands. He circled the famous trio, face hidden in the shadows.

"What is Seigaku doing this deep in the southern district?" Demigod asked calmly.

"What are cops doing in our district?" the man replied.

The man stepped out of the shadows. He had his arms behind his head, his red hair visible even in the darkness of night. He wore boats, dark jeans, and a navy shirt with a leather jacket. It looked out of place on the petite man, but when his face hardened and his eyes locked on the heroes, the intimidating attire fit.

"Feline," Master stated.

"Oh, you know me?" The man smiled. "I'm flattered. Of course, I already know you." He continued to circle them. "Master. Emperor. Demigod. I've heard all about you guys."

"Why not just kill us now?" Demigod asked, practically taunting. "Moon never misses."

Feline bent backwards onto his hands. His shirt fell down over his chest, revealing the pistol tucked into his pants. "You guys are already claimed. I'm only allowed to kill Tensai and Iron Lung."

Demigod waved his hand. Feline tumbled to the ground, but caught himself. He stood up, brushing his hands off on his pants. "That wasn't very nice of you." He looked at something on Demigod's chest, and then smiled. "And just because we can't kill you that doesn't mean we can't have a little fun."

Demigod extended his arm, and Feline went flying. He hung over the edge of the building in mid air. He didn't struggle, just stared. Demigod looked off into the dark, to where the bullet had come from. To where Moon was. Then, he looked down at this chest, and saw a red dot. He looked back at Feline.

"Moon, take him and leave. I'm not in the mood for fun."

Feline practically purred. "You're so boring. I don't get why anyone would want to play with you."

Demigod waved his arm, and Feline flew towards Moon on a distant building. The red light on his chest disappeared. Master turned on his infrared, and searched for the two men, but only saw residual heat.

Moon and Feline were gone.

.

"You're doing it wrong," Marui insisted. "Let me see it."

"No," Niou replied. Marui reached past Niou, but the white haired man slapped his hand away. "Stop it."

The two stood in front of the communicator, the large screen showing a series of codes and numbers. The smaller screens had feeds from the cameras from the southern district. Niou was typing on the keyboard while Marui tried to tap certain keys.

The teleportation pads glowed as Master, Emperor, and Demigod appeared. They peeled off their masks, setting them down on a nearby table. Silently, they walked over until they were standing behind the two men, who were oblivious to their presence.

"Yukimura's going to be pissed if you don't have this done by the time they get back," Marui said. He stepped closer to Niou, as if trying to shove him out of the way. "Move."

"_Ahem_."

The two turned at Yukimura's cough. Marui moved away from Niou as if he had just been shocked. Niou moved to the side, allowing for the three to step closer to the communicator. Niou looked over the three at Marui, who looked away.

"I accessed the main system, and took control of seventeen cameras," Niou reported, slowly moving his gaze to his leader. "It will take three minutes to take control of the others."

Yukimura nodded. "Good work."

"I couldn't track Moon or Feline," Niou added. He reached in front of Yukimura, tapping a few keys. The screen split into four, each one a feed from a different camera. "I saved the data from your encounter."

"It was my idea," Marui said. Niou shot him a glare.

"Can you create three-dimensional images?" Yukimura asked, looking at Niou.

The hacker stared at Yukimura for a moment. Behind his blue eyes, deep in his mind ran numbers and calculations and facts that most computers couldn't comprehend.

"Yes," he answered after a moment. "If I had the proper camera angles I could extrapolate from that and fill in what wasn't captured on film."

"Good. That will be helpful once cameras have been installed in the other districts."

"We didn't get audio," Marui mentioned. "Why were Feline and Moon in our district?"

"We don't know," Sanada answered. "But we will find out."

Yukimura dismissed the other heroes. They went over to the elevator, but he didn't join them. He stayed in the basement, staring at the screen. Then, he thought of Mori.

.

**Rikkaidai University  
May 7, 10:12**

Yukimura sat outside the campus coffee shop gripping his mug of lukewarm tea in one hand and his cell phone in the other. The _Post_'s blog had released a small article on Seigaku's presence in the southern district. Fukuda had been quoted more than once, but the heroes were never mentioned. Yukimura did not mind. He didn't agree to help the police or the mayor for fame; he did it because he believed in helping the people of the city.

Like Mori, who was approaching the table with the goofiest grin that Yukimura couldn't help but smile at. She set down her school bag and camera case as she sat down. He put his phone in his pocket; she set a manila folder in front of him.

"What are these?" Yukimura asked, feigning confusion as he picked up the folder.

"Someone dropped these off at the _Post_ and said to give them to me. Look inside. They're _beautiful_." Yukimura bent the metal tabs and opened the folder, sliding the contents out onto the table. There was one black-and-white picture of each hero in action in perfect clarity straight from the new security cameras. Mori tapped a picture in the middle and said, "My favorite."

It was of Demigod. He was jumping down from a platform, his masked face staring straight at the camera. He looked so mysterious, so valiant, like a figure of legend had come to life.

"I'm running that one with my article tomorrow. Front page."

"That's great."

"Great? It's _amazing_."

"Amazing," Yukimura agreed, looking up from the picture to smile kindly at her.

One of the first things Yukimura learned about Mori Haruka was that she had different smiles. There were the ones she didn't really mean, the ones that turned into frowns, the ones she had when being polite because his joke was not as funny as he had thought, the one she had when looking at her camera screen because the shot was perfect, and a million others. Whenever Yukimura smiled at her, her lips stretched, her freckles seemed larger, and her teeth showed.

He liked that smile the most.

* * *

**A/N: I wasn't going to introduce Mori until chapter 6, but I decided to do it earlier. I figure every superhero story needs a heroine. I really did put a lot of thought into her character and that doesn't show just yet, but she gets better :)**

**Believe it or not, there is actually a plot that will be addressed. Everything Seigaku is doing will slowly make sense.  
**


	4. East and West

**Rikkaidai City Police Headquarters  
May 11, 7:05**

Sanada and Kobayashi stared at the boxes of Chinese takeout on their desks. A co-worker had gone out and picked up lunch from their usual place. Kobayashi picked half-heartedly at his chicken. Sanada hadn't even touched his spring rolls. The thought of eating made both men sick.

They had just returned from a crime scene. Three were found dead where the east and south districts met. Sanada and Kobayashi had seen enough of Seigaku's victims to recognize their MO. Despite that, their stomachs still twisted when they saw three innocent people lying dead – never to smile, never to laugh, never to live.

It always hit Kobayashi harder than Sanada. Sanada had learned to remove himself from the world long ago. Kobayashi was still attached, still had people he loved. Sometimes, Sanada wondered why a man like Kobayashi put up with this job.

"The mayor won't admit it's the bill," Kobayashi mentioned arbitrarily. He swiveled back and forth in his chair, holding his white box with one hand and a fork in the other. "He'll say Seigaku is just expanding. Cover it up like a coward. It started when that damn bill was signed, not when Seigaku decided to come into the southern district."

"Nakano's a good man; he doesn't want to scare people and cause a panic," Sanada argued.

"People are already scared. Five cops are more than two dozen civilians are dead. Pretty darn sure that's a panic. We need to cut the crap and start protecting the people – curfews for children, news reporters telling the people the truth so they're informed, all that crap."

"If Nakano admits it because of the bill, all the good it will do in the future is gone. It's not Nakano's fault."

"Don't get me wrong, Nakano's the best thing to happen to this city since the heroes. He does what needs to be done and doesn't stop until things are right. But this bill..." Kobayashi shook his head. "What good has come out of it?"

Sanada pushed his spring rolls to the side, reaching for a box of rice and a spoon. "It doesn't matter. What's done is done. All we can do now is help who we can."

"You sound like one of those heroes." Kobayashi set his food back onto his desk, his stomach too full of hate and disgust to eat. "They get more done in a few hours than we do in a week."

"They're breaking the law."

"Who cares? We haven't locked them up yet. We don't shoot at them when we see them at a crime scene. Fukuda and Nakano contact them regularly for help. We let them do it because we know they're helping. We all know the truth: this town would be in ruins if not for those guys."

"I agree," Sanada admitted. He put a spoonful of rice into his mouth, and realized Kobayashi hadn't replied. He looked at his partner, who was giving him a considerate look. The lines on his face were well defined, his head tilted just slightly in thought as his thick eyebrows scrunched together.

"You never say anything about the heroes that isn't fact," Kobayashi pointed out. The hard lines on his face lessened as his muscles relaxed to form a wicked smile. "So what's your opinion on them? Good or bad? _Alien_?"

"They're good men. That's fact."

Kobayashi leaned back in his chair, still smiling. "No, that's your opinion."

Sanada put another spoonful of rice into his mouth. Kobayashi looked ready to take this topic and run with it, but his phone distracted him. He grabbed it off of his desk, answering with a "Hey, honey." Kobayashi grabbed a pen out of a mug, scribbling something down onto a sticky note. He stuck it onto his computer screen, and then said, "I love you," when he hung up.

"Everything alright?" Sanada asked.

Kobayashi nodded. "Yeah. Doctor's appointment got rescheduled."

He got that distant look on his face, the one Yukimura sometimes got when he talked about a photo Mori showed him. Kobayashi always got that look on face his when he talked about his wife. He had a small smile on his lips and a look of pure content in his dark brown eyes. It was like just thinking about her made everything okay. Sanada had never seen someone more in love.

"Mei's pregnant," Kobayashi announced with a smile that filled his face. "We found out three months ago. I would have told you sooner, but we wanted to make sure everything was okay considering, well, you know."

Sanada nodded. Kobayashi was referring to the other times his wife, Mei, was pregnant. A few years ago, they decided to have a child. Mei had two miscarriages before she finally kept one. Only something went wrong. The child died shortly after being born.

After that, doctors said it was near impossible for Mei to conceive a child that would survive. They had looked into adoption, but the process was long and hard. To be having a child of their own was something they could only have dreamed of. But even if they had a child of their own, Sanada knew they would adopt one, too, out of the goodness of their hearts.

"Everything looks good so far," Kobayashi added. He was practically glowing. "Mei's happy as can be."

"Congratulations. That's great."

Kobayashi nodded. "It is, isn't?"

That's when Sanada realized that no matter how bad things seemed there was always something good to make it all worthwhile.

.

**The Warehouse  
14:30**

Sanada went up to the fourth floor and up the spiral staircase to his room to change into a set of workout clothes. When he went down to the third floor, he saw Yukimura standing by the weight rack. He had his arms stretched out and his eyes closed in concentration as he levitated the rack with Sanada's weights. Sanada had super strength – he could lift a bus with one hand – and those weights were anything but light.

"Yukimura."

The psychic lost his concentration. The rack dropped against the floor, cracking the wood. The weights rolled off, and Yukimura kicked off the ground. He floated backwards, his feet a few inches off the ground in case any rouge weights threatened to roll over his toes.

"Since when can you fly?" Sanada asked as he walked over to the fallen weights.

"Levitate," Yukimura corrected. Sweat rolled down the edge of his nose running into his eye. The gym was hot, but not that hot. His body was obviously stressed. His feet touched the ground, but he seemed unsteady. "I've been practicing. I can only do it for a second. I used to be able to do it longer a long time ago."

"Yanagi told you not to push your limits." Sanada moved the rack away from the small dent, and began lifting the weights and placing them where they belonged. Some of those weights were difficult from him to pick up with two hands. How Yukimura's mind can sustain that level of pressure was beyond him.

"I'm not separating things." There was a small pause before Yukimura continued. "This is nothing my mind can't handle."

Sanada placed the last weight in place, and then turned to look at his leader. "You know your limits better than I do."

"Niou's working on a new project," Yukimura mentioned. "It's a motorcycle. Or a robotic dog. I can't really tell. His schematics don't make sense."

It was an obvious change of subject, one that Sanada refused to follow. The detective leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. He had learned quite a bit about studying people, but he could never figure Yukimura out. On occasion, Sanada saw Niou stare at Yukimura as if he were putting the pieces of their leader together like a puzzle only to discover the pieces were from three different sets and he had to start over.

Yukimura was an enigma, a mystery that couldn't be solved.

"What do you think life would be like if we hadn't been caught in that explosion?" Sanada asked.

Yukimura didn't answer for a moment. Then, a smile crept onto his lips. "I never would have passed the spelling test I had the next day."

"Yukimura." When Sanada looked him straight in the eye, the psychic stopped smiling.

"Our families wouldn't have had to bury empty caskets for closure. We wouldn't have been trapped for eight years. We never would have met each other. All the people we saved would be dead. We would be normal."

_Normal_. Sanada had the feeling Yukimura thought of Mori. If Yukimura wasn't Demigod, he could be with Mori. He could see her smile every day and not have to worry about his enemies hurting her. He could wear the same content look Kobayashi had when he spoke about Mei. He could be happy. It was a life he could only dream of having.

"Why bring that up?"

"Kobayashi. He thinks the town would be in ruins if it wasn't for us."

"This town would be fine without us. New heroes would rise up. People like Kobayashi would do what's right. This town will always be protected even after we're gone." Yukimura began walking towards the elevator, his body stiff and movements tight. "I'm going to take a shower. See you at ten for patrol."

When the doors slid shut behind the psychic, Sanada looked at the hole in the floor. Sanada realized he had been wrong earlier; Yukimura didn't know his limits at all. Yukimura's power was limitless. He would sacrifice his mind before he showed any sign weakness.

.

**Rikkaidai City, Southern District  
23:50**

Patrol was part of their routine. Sometimes they went out in squads, other times as a group. Once in a blue moon, only one hero could spare time from their "normal lives" to protect the streets; those were the nights when they relied on the police to get to the people they couldn't. They took every causality personally because Rikkaidai was_ their_ city.

At first, donning the mask was a duty, a responsibility. After five years of slipping into the shadows of the night, it was part of them, of who they were. They were part of the city, part of the lives of its people. Even though no one knew who they were behind the mask, they knew the heroes. The heroes were the men who were there no matter what – though the good and the bad – for them.

"Gentleman, Trickster, Tensai, Iron Lung – patrol the western district," Demigod ordered. "Emperor, Master, Ace, and I will be working in the eastern district. If anything goes wrong, send up a flare."

The heroes nodded, not questioning their orders. They trusted Demigod with their lives. He'd saved them twice – fifteen years ago and seven years ago. They would follow that man to the ends of the earth if it was what he wanted.

Trickster, Tensai, and Iron Lung pulled small rectangular prisms out of their utility belts. They clicked a button, and the prism transformed into a small grappling hook that could hold more weight than it looked. The three aimed at a nearby building while Gentleman kicked off the ground and took to the sky.

Each hero had memorized the city and had mastered the art of grappling hooks long ago. Gentleman flew silently through the inky night sky as his teammates hooked from building to building with ease. Lights blurred past in a stream of color– green, red, white, yellow – that mixed together like an abstract work of art. The night air was chilled and harsh against the exposed skin on their faces, but they didn't care because they felt alive as they soared through the sky.

Tensai let out a shout, unable to contain the feeling that pumped through his veins and shook him to the bone. Trickster looked over at him with a small smile before looking back at his path. Iron Lung told him to be quiet. Seconds later, Tensai heard a sharp ring, and then:

"_Quiet_," Demigod ordered.

Tensai took one hand off his grappling hook, and pressed it to his head. There was another sharp ring in his head as the telepathic connection dissolved. He hated that sound more than Trickster's grins and Ace's cocky attitude.

The west district was half residential and half Fudomine. The northern half located dangerously close to the radioactive northern district was home to the Fudomine mob. Compared to Seigaku, Fudomine was nothing. But the heroes kept an eye on it. They knew better than to ignore a dark horse that lurked in the shadows. For a period of time, they had been the dark horses.

Lamps lined the streets bellow, erasing any need for the night-vision function of the masks. The buildings changed from high-level apartments and businesses to lower-income apartments and small, single-level stores. In the far distance, a small suburb just outside of the west district was illuminated from the lights of many cookie-cutter homes.

The heroes continued to soar through the city, keeping their eyes peeled for any signs of trouble. When they reached the edge of the west district, Tensai stopped on the roof of an apartment building. The other heroes stopped, confused. Gentleman floated down, a small swoosh of air moving along the cement when his feet met the rooftop.

"Why did we stop?" Iron Lung asked.

Tensai pointed to the corner of a brick building. The others didn't see anything with their naked eyes. Tensai, however, would see whatever it was crystal clear. Besides his super intelligence, Tensai had super senses. His eyesight, his tactile sense, everything was ten times stronger than any human's. Even in the darkness, Tensai's eyesight was better than a bat's sonar.

The three heroes they reached up for the masks and put their finger on the edge. The lens zoomed in, focusing in on an Atobe Corp. camera. They examined other buildings, realizing there were dozens of cameras already set up.

"The cameras," Iron Lung said. "They're up ahead of schedule. So what?"

"Look at the ground," Tensai replied. He repositioned his grappling hook, and took off.

The other heroes quickly looked at the streets below, and saw what made Tensai freeze earlier. Two men with black masks across their eyes wearing dark pink shirts, black jeans, and leather jackets were walking through the streets with video cameras. They walked calmly, unafraid, unchallenged.

They recognized the men immediately – Spot and Speedster, the strongest members of the Fudomine mob except for Lion, its leader.

Gentleman moved his hand off of his mask and kicked off the ground. Trickster and Iron Lung repositioned their grappling hooks to a lower building.

Tensai was already on the streets, approaching the two from behind. He rolled a few of his explosive gumballs in his hand, and said, "You guys don't exactly look like the cinematic type."

"Don't mind us," Speedster replied, "we'll only take a minute."

"A minute?" Spot muttered. "It's been three hours. I don't understand why we couldn't have run. The footage would have been just as clear. Or we could have done it during the day..."

Trickster and Iron Lung jumped down from a low building, joining Tensai. As per usual, Gentleman stayed in the sky, ready to press a unique spot on his mask that the other heroes didn't have. With a tap of his finger, he could unleash his greatest weapon – laser vision.

"Drop the cameras," Iron Lung ordered. "Or else."

"Or else what?" Speedster moved the camera so it was taping the tops of the buildings making sure to catch every camera. "You don't kill people." He reached for a shiny silver knife that rested on his belt, and began to twirl it with his free hand. "But we do."

"Don't antagonize them," Spot grumbled to his partner. "They have Gentleman with them. Lion would be mad if we showed up at base with burns. And we have to be back by midnight."

"I guess we can jam another time." Speedster snapped the flip-screen of the camera shut. He carefully put it into the pocket of his leather jacket.

Then, Speedster whipped his body around, the dagger flying out of his hand. Tensai and Trickster's minds went into overtime to calculate its trajectory. Tensai figured the calculation in seconds. He was safe. The knife had been aimed as his shoulder, but the blade would be off by an inch. So when he felt someone ram into him, he panicked.

Trickster shoved the red headed hero out of the way of the knife. The dagger grazed Trickster's arm, cutting his suit and drawing blood. He tumbled to the ground with Tensai, pinning the red headed hero to the ground.

Spot took off with Speedster right behind them.

"Catch me if you can!" Speedster shouted.

Tensai chucked the gumballs in his hand at the mob members. It was hard to move with Trickster loaming over him and his good arm pinned to the ground. When the gumballs hit the pavement, they exploded. A thin layer of smoke surrounded the impact site.

Spot's foot caught on a manhole, but he was already getting back up as the smoke cleared. Speedster was out of sight; he had been given that alias for a reason.

"Gentleman, let's go!" Iron Lung shouted. Gentlemen zoomed off through the skies like a missile. Then, Iron Lung took off at a sprint. He couldn't catch Speedster, but he could definitely catch Spot.

Only he couldn't because Spot reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small can. He tossed it to the ground, and a cloud of pink smoke erupted into the sky, forcing Gentleman and Iron Lung to stop moving. When the gas cleared, Spot was gone.

Trickster had stood up, and had pulled Tensai up with his free hand. Trickster held his other hand over his wound, not once wincing or grimacing in pain. Tensai approached Trickster. He reached out his arm to check his teammate's wound, but Trickster shook his head. Tensai recoiled his arm.

"Come _on_," Tensai said. "Let's get out of the streets, send up a flare, and get that cleaned up."

"I'm fine," Trickster insisted. He moved his hand, revealing the wound. His suit had been ripped but the gash was gone. Blood tinged the edges of the fabric, proving the knife had cut him, but his skin showed no aliments.

"Doesn't that hurt?" Tensai moved his eyes away from the wound and up to Trickster's face. Despite the domino masks that hide their faces, Tensai could feel those blue eyes on him, calculating, judging, questioning. Tensai clarified, "When you change?"

Trickster looked up above Tensai's head. "A flare."

Tensai turned. From the eastern district, sparks of light rose into the sky.

.

**Rikkaidai City, Eastern District**

Ace swore when a bullet zoomed by his head. He rolled and ducked behind the wall of a nearby building, reaching up to turn on his x-ray lens. The whites of his mask turned blue. He looked through the empty building he was hiding behind, focusing on the bank.

Demigod was fighting with the goons in the vault, Emperor was tracking down the getaway van, and Master was getting the guards. Ace looked for his target – Viper.

Viper was leaning against a wall beneath a fire escape using a dumpster as a shield in case any stray bullets shot out of the bank. A large black duffle bag was positioned at his feet, filled with brand new bills, enough to buys a decent amount of ammo and guns. He wore his signature bandana and a leather jacket, and had his gun aimed at the building Ace was behind. Viper'd have to step out into the open to get a clear shot, and even then it wasn't guaranteed his bullet would curve the correct way and hit Ace.

Ace pressed his back to the building and turned off his x-ray lens. He had one assignment – to stop Viper from getting away with the cash – and he couldn't move without increasing his risk of getting shot. He thought about what he had at his disposal – his strength, his speed, a can of knock out gas, a few trackers, a grapple hook, a breather, and a flare gun. He decided to do the first thing that came to mind even though he only had one shot at it.

Ace reached into his utility belt, and pulled out a small prism. He pressed a button, and it turned into a small flare gun. He reached into another pouch, pulling out a small cylinder. He loaded the gun, and pointed it at the sky.

He shot the flare up into the sky, dropped the gun, and took off. Viper had looked up at the sky as Ace had hoped. Ace sped up, moving faster than sound, air blowing past his eyes, colors blurring. He slammed into Viper with enough force to smash through the bricks.

The gun flew out of Viper's hand. Ace pinned Viper to the rubble, seriously impressed with the guy for staying conscious through that. Not that he would ever be impressed with a criminal. Definitely not.

"Get off of –"

Ace pressed harder against Viper, adding more and more pressure to his ribcage. Ace wasn't as strong as Emperor, but his super strength was enough to keep Viper in place.

The mob member thrashed underneath Ace, but the hero wasn't letting up. He pressed down on Viper, his strength tittering between strong and brutal. He heard sirens, and knew it wouldn't be long before the cops could show up, before someone could take the bag and –

The bag.

Ace whipped his head around. The duffle bag that had been at Viper's feet was gone. He looked back a Viper, grabbed a fistful of his bandana, and lifted his head.

"Nighty-night snake boy."

Ace crashed Viper's head into the rubble beneath him. The mobster's head rolled to the side as a line of blood ran down his neck – he was out cold. Alive, but out.

Ace stood up, kicking the Viper's gun as far away as possible, and stepped out of the hole he had created in the brick wall. Police were pulling up the scene by the dozens. While that was good and all, it would have been better if the bag was still there.

Ace surveyed the area, and swore repeatedly. He had one job: to keep Viper from getting away with the money. He was pretty sure just keeping Viper from getting away wasn't going to cut it with Demigod.

"Where the hell did it go?" Ace muttered. He looked under the dumpster, on the other side of the hole, everywhere within a ten foot radius. Then, he decided to look up.

The fire escape Viper had been standing under. Had there been someone on top of the building waiting for a chance to take the money? Was Viper merely a middle man? Well, obviously a planned middle man, but a middle man nonetheless?

Ace turned on his infrared lens with a tap of his finger, and examined the fire escape. Residual heat remained, proving his theory. Well, crap.

"Ace."

Ace turned, switching his lens from red to white with another tap of his finger. Emperor walked over, a few tears in his suit, but otherwise fine. Which was bad because Ace had failed. Again.

"Teleport back to base," Emperor ordered. "Demigod, Master, and I have to take care of some things. We'll listen to your report in the morning."

"I –"

"Go."

Ace reached into his utility belt, grabbed his teleporter, and pressed the yellow button. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

Emperor turned, and returned to the bank. Demigod and Master were hauling guys out of the bank, leaving them for the cops to cuff and take in. The cops would try to question the goons, but they wouldn't get anything important. These guys were from the lower levels, nothing more than muscle to do the dirty work.

The fact that Viper and possibly another higher-up had showed meant that Seigaku needed money. But that didn't make sense. Seigaku pulled a few heists every month and sometimes dealt with drugs. They had enough money to sustain their ranks. That meant the money was for a miscellaneous expense, something out of the ordinary, something important enough to use Viper.

Out of the corner of his mask, Emperor saw figures moving. Tensai, Iron Lung, and Trickster approached from the ground while Gentleman swooped down from the sky like a bird of prey.

"We saw the flare," Iron Lung said. "What happened?"

"Seigaku robbed a bank. Ace shot off a flare as a distraction," Emperor stated. "Anything in the western district?"

"That's a joke, right?" Tensai asked. Emperor didn't move a single muscle. "Alright. Obviously not a joke..."

"Speedster and Spot were scouting the location of the Atobe Corp. cameras," Gentleman explained. "We tried to pursue, but they escaped."

Emperor nodded, eyeing Trickster's suit for a brief moment where the knife had cut through the fabric. "Return to base. We will listen to your full report once we are done here. Tend to any injuries you sustained, and then access the new cameras. I want to see where Speedster and Spot were looking."

The four nodded and reached into their utility belts. Emperor turned and walked to the bank to assist Demigod and Master.

.

**The Warehouse  
May 12, 2:14**

Marui and Jackal were the only ones in the basement when Master, Emperor, and Demigod appeared on the teleportation pads. The three heroes ripped their masks off their faces, set them on a nearby table, and walked over to the communicator where the two were loading up the cameras from the western district.

Marui was sitting in a large chair in front of the communicator; Jackal was standing behind him. They had shed their masks, but still wore their uniforms.

"Where are the others?" Sanada asked. He examined the screen. Marui was working on taking over a string of cameras near the border south-west boarder. Hacking was Niou's forte. It was the one skill regarding electronics Marui and Yanagi were less knowledgeable about than Niou. Regardless, Marui was able to hack into Atobe Corp. without any challenge.

"Kirihara was already in his room when we got here," Jackal began. "Yagyuu and Niou went to their rooms when Marui said he could hack into the system faster than Niou."

"How was I supposed to know he was going to leave?" Marui asked.

"Just admit he's better than you at something and get over it already. Besides, the guy took a knife for you."

Marui rolled his eyes. "Yeah. A knife that wouldn't have hit me. I'm telling you he's slacking."

Yukimura sighed. "You two can retire for the night. Marui, you and Niou can finish accessing the remaining cameras tomorrow. Jackal, you can give me your report in the morning."

Marui hit a few keys to save the data, and then stood up. He hit a button a few inches away from the main keyboard. The floor around the chair he had been sitting in opened, and the chair lowered in the floor. Once the floor panels had closed, Marui and Jackal headed towards the elevator.

The elevator screeched up. The atmosphere changed when the three heroes remained. They realized how dangerous things were becoming – Seigaku and Fudomine were active. Very active.

"Do you think they realize how dangerous things are?" Sanada questioned.

"The others or the cops?" Yukimura asked.

"The others."

Yukimura took in a deep breath. "If they do, they're hiding it. Maybe they're subconsciously aware and repressing it. I don't know."

"Seigaku wants to kill us."

Yukimura ran a hand through his hair, a million thoughts running through his mind. It was all on him, the leader, the one who saved them all those years ago. They were depending on him to save them again, to keep them alive, to keep the city from falling to pieces. He felt like a ten-year-old boy hidden beneath tons of cement again.

The people of the city had become his responsibility too. People like Mori, who thought of him as a guardian angel and believed in him nearly as much as his teammates. Mori probably believed in him, in Demigod, more than anyone else in the world.

"We can't die," Yukimura said firmly. "Not yet. We have work to do. Yanagi, check the footage from the west district. I want to see where Spot and Speedster were scouting. Sanada, go over all the records we have on Seigaku higher ups. I want to send all of our information to the police."

"Even our top classified info?" Sanada questioned.

"Yes. All of it. Include Fudomine's info. No one else is going to be injured because we were too proud to work with the police." Yukimura grabbed his mask off the table, and headed for the teleportation pads. He stepped up, his friends watching him. Yukimura smiled as he slipped on his mask. "Just sweeping the southern district again. Don't wait up."

Then, Demigod was gone.

.

On the fourth floor, Jackal headed to the kitchen to get something to eat before going to bed. Marui walked up the spiral staircase. He absentmindedly rubbed the pads of his fingers together. The skin slid together with ease. His palms were smoother than most – they were flawless scars.

When he reached the loft with their bedrooms he stopped in front of a door that was not his own. He knocked twice not bothering to call out it was him. No one else bothered Niou when he was in his room.

Niou opened the door, his blue eyes falling on Marui. There was something intimidating about his gaze. It made Marui feel raw and exposed. Niou had already changed out of his suit, and was wearing a pair of sweat pants. Marui couldn't help but notice Niou's chest. No bruises, no scars, no burns – just pale skin. Any aliments or injuries he morphed away. The others were crushed with hideous flaws from their past and injuries sustained while wearing their mask.

The faint scent of smoke and steel drifted out of Niou's room. Marui had only been inside once, but he could never forget the stacks of blueprints and half finished robots that sat on his desk. Marui tried to look inside, but Niou stood in the doorway, shoulder pressed against the frame in a lazy lean that blocked his view. His blue eyes seemed to ask the question for him – _what?_

"Is your arm okay?" Marui asked. He looked at Niou's arm. No scar. No blood. No sign of it ever happening. He looked back up at Niou's face. "It looked like a pretty nasty cut."

"It's fine."

"What about your suit?"

"I'll fix it tomorrow. That all?"

Marui nodded his head once because he couldn't even remember what possessed him to stop by Niou's room. The white haired man moved away from the frame, reaching for the door to swing it shut.

Marui stepped forward, putting his hand against the wooden door. Niou raised a curious eyebrow for a brief moment, and then let it fall. Marui wondered if he was losing his mind. He should have just dropped the conversation at that. Now, Niou was staring at him, expecting something, anything, to explain why he had stopped the door from closing.

"Something else?"

"Why did you jump in front of me?" Niou tilted his head slightly to the side, staring at Marui, his gaze unwavering and exposing. Marui added, "The knife wouldn't have hit me."

"I must have miscalculated its trajectory." Niou tilted his head the other way, his eyebrows scrunching together the way they did when he was confused. "Does it matter?"

Marui shook his head. "No. Not really. Just thought it'd be nice to have you admit you were wrong about something for once. It's always fun to rub things in your face."

"Whatever you say." The corner of his mouth quirked up like he knew something Marui didn't. "Anything other pointless questions you'd like to ask?"

Marui shook his head. "Just – I'll see you tomorrow. We have to finish the camera stuff."

Niou nodded. Marui turned and walked away, Niou's door clicking shut behind him.

* * *

**A/N: Feedback is loved :)**


	5. Seigaku

**The Warehouse  
May 19, 12:55**

Jackal, Niou, and Yukimura stood to the side of the gym watching as Marui took his place in front of SAM the android. Yukimura enjoyed watching Marui fight – he was evasive, but for good reason. Marui's powers were mental. He had super intelligence and could multiply his senses tenfold. Physical combat was his weak point, but if he could get in one hit, his enemy was done for the count. The problem was getting in one hit.

Marui ducked as SAM swung its fist. He jolted to the side and jabbed the robot where a human's kidney would be located, forcing the robot to take a step back. SAM snapped its leg up so fast Marui didn't have time to dodge. The super genius landed on the floor with a thump. SAM stood motionless, realizing it had won.

"That was pathetic!" Kirihara exclaimed, laughing hysterically. "You lasted, like, five seconds!"

"My powers aren't physical," Marui muttered as he stood up. "I doubt you could do any better, seaweed brain."

"Can you two go a day without arguing?" Jackal asked, sighing at the end. Yukimura smiled, amused.

"I always beat SAM," Kirihara said proudly.

"Then beat him now," Marui responded.

Kirihara smirked. He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck as he approached the android. A laser shot out of SAM's eyes and ran over his body, verifying that Kirihara was in a fighting stance and challenging. Inside its complex circuitry and metal head, SAM was pulling up information on past fights with Kirihara. SAM's memory kept them from become complacent.

SAM approached, bouncing on the balls of its feet like a boxer. It swung out an arm, which Kirihara dodged, and then another, which Kirihara ducked away from.

Kirihara shoved his fist into SAM's exposed side, and the robot froze. Sparks flew from the machine, starling the hero. He moved back, and then realized he had not just hit SAM, he had rammed his fist through its torso.

SAM clattered to the floor. The room went silent.

Kirihara looked nervously at Niou and Marui. They had spent a month working on SAM, and another month fixing the bugs. Those two got protective about their projects. Once, Kirihara broke his domino mask because he gripped it too hard, and Niou had sent him death glares for a week.

"You," Niou began, walking towards Kirihara, "are dead."

Niou's body shifted as he moved towards Kirihara, his muscles growing and his arms extending. He snarled like an animal, his voice rough and scratchy. He barred a set of long, sharp fangs. He locked his cold blue eyes with Kirihara and snapped his teeth with a growl.

"No powers in the common room!" Kirihara shouted, sprinting for dear life.

"This isn't the common room, and you just super punched my robot."

"Yukimura! Niou's metamorphed! _Help!_"

Yukimura laughed softly to himself. Jackal and Marui wondered over to where the leader was, unable to control how large their smiles got.

Satisfied that Kirihara wasn't coming anywhere near him or SAM, Niou turned around, walking towards Yukimura and the others. He morphed his body back into its usual form and stuck his hands into his pockets. He ran his tongue over his teeth behind his lips, as if checking to make sure the fangs were gone.

"I say you morph me so I have scales and stuff, and then we sneak into his bedroom at midnight," Marui said to Niou. "Jackal'll help. Won't you?"

"I have work," Jackal said.

Marui shrugged. "Quit or something."

"He didn't mean to break SAM," Yukimura said, changing the subject back to Kirihara. "You were thinking about building a new one anyways, weren't you, Niou?"

"I still wanted to salvage the circuitry. The brat's probably ruined it."

Kirihara appeared next to Niou in the blink of an eye. "I'm not a brat!"

Niou turned his head, his teeth becoming sharper, longer. Kirihara sprinted to the far side of the gym again. He moved like a blur, his super speed allowing him to travel at the speed of sound. Paired with his super strength, he would be near impossible to stop except Kirihara couldn't control his powers, hence breaking the android.

Yukimura was smiling. He enjoyed moments like these when they were able to act younger than they were. Sanada said they shouldn't be childish, that they were adults and should act accordingly. Yukimura disagreed. They spent eight years of their lives locked up, drugged, poked at, and they deserved to feel things that made them feel alive. There was a difference between surviving and living. Moments like this proved they were alive.

When Yukimura heard Yanagi's voice over the intercom, he realized that those moments couldn't last forever.

"_There is an incoming message from the police chief." _

Yukimura and the others walked towards the elevator. Niou leaned against the corner. When Marui leaned next to him, Niou looked at him for the briefest of moments before returning his gaze to Kirihara. The younger man flinched when Niou smirked. The doors creaked shut, and then they went down.

Yukimura wondered if Yanagi ever peered into the heads of their teammates. Yukimura would be tempted to if he had the gift of telepathy. He would look in Niou's mind first. He always wondered what made Niou so distant. They didn't share their experiences from their time in the facility, but the team knew bits and pieces of what happened to each other during their stay.

They knew Yukimura had a scar that ran down his spine. They knew Marui didn't have fingerprints. They knew Yagyuu's eyes were damaged beyond repair. They knew Jackal flinched whenever he heard a bullet. They could figure out what everyone went through based on their powers and scars, but not Niou. They knew something about everybody except for Niou.

Any scars Niou had were morphed away with a quick metamorphosis. He could change his appearance at will – become invisible, change his race, extend his arms like rubber. Only the changes weren't permanent. He could change his appearance, but his original DNA was still there determining his core appearance. He had the scars and the bruises, he just didn't show them.

Niou did not discuss his power or his experiences during those eight years of torment, so Yukimura assumed it was a hell equal or worse than the one he had experienced. Niou had to hide his scars for a reason. Yukimura wondered what went on inside Niou's head, and sometimes he wondered if he really wanted to know the answer to that.

When the doors opened, they were in the basement. Yanagi was standing in front of the communicator, and accepted the transmission when he heard the five distinct pairs of footsteps approaching from behind.

"What do you need, Fukuda?" Yukimura asked, standing beside Yanagi.

"I am only calling you because I'd rather you die than my men," Fukuda muttered. Firmer and louder, he continued, "I received an unmarked package at the beginning of the day. Forensics checked it, and it was clean. It contained a computer disc with a video."

"Is the disc currently in your computer?" Yanagi asked.

"Yes," Fukuda replied. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Niou stepped forward, and put his fingers on the keyboard. "Don't touch anything," he ordered Fukuda. Then, he began to type. One of the smaller screens surrounding the main communicator pulled up a desktop. The mouse moved, and Fukuda growled.

"Are you hacking into my computer?"

"You contacted vigilantes," Niou stated. "Deal with it."

Niou clicked the final key a little harder than he needed to. A video pulled up on one of the smaller side screens that surrounded the main communicator.

The screen was white. The voice was distorted. Another small screen had automatically tried to decode the voice but to no avail. It had been put through too many filters. It was possible different people were saying the message at the same time. Seigaku was learning the heroes' tricks.

It was a short message, but very clear:

"_If the police enter our district, they will be killed." _

The screen changed from white to black as the video ended.

"As you can see," Fukuda began, "Seigaku is becoming more troublesome. That message is only half the reason I am contacting you. Obviously I cannot send my men in or else they will be targeted by the Seigaku mob. That leaves you. I need you to investigate a report.

"According to some of our most trusted CIs, Seigaku is planning something big. We have Intel confirming a delivery that will be received tonight at the eastern docks. We believe Seigaku is receiving a shipment of illegal weaponry. We would like you to stop them from receiving the shipment. The boat will come in at eleven tonight."

"You want us to do your dirty work because you're scared your men will be targeted?" Kirihara questioned. "We're always targeted!"

"Are you going to help or not?" Fukuda snapped.

"We will help you, Police Chief Fukuda, if only to spare the lives of your men," Yukimura replied calmly. "We will call you when we have stopped Seigaku from receiving the shipment."

Yukimura ended the transmission.

"When should we deploy?" Jackal asked.

"Be suited up and report to the pads by ten. We'll teleport to the eastern docks, and set up surveillance. Contact Sanada and Yagyuu and inform them of the situation."

"Yes, sir," the men replied.

.

Niou and Marui tried to analyze Seigaku's message manually; they had no more luck than the computer. Yanagi said he would continue to work on it, but the two knew it would be pointless. Yanagi was smart, a genius by human standards, but only human standards. If Niou, a genius to humans, couldn't figure it out with the help of a super genius, Yanagi didn't have a chance.

Niou went up to his room to grab a tattered black tool box, and then joined Marui in the gym. The two walked into SAM's electronic circle and flipped SAM onto its stomach to unscrew the control panel on its back. Niou set the old tool box next to the robot, digging through it. He found a screwdriver, and pressed it the metal.

"Kirihara didn't mean to do it," Marui said. "He's scared to death of you."

"I know." Marui didn't know which statement Niou was referring to. Niou pulled the back of the control panel off of the android. He set the metal plate to the side, exchanging the screwdriver for a small flashlight. He turned it on, illuminating the wires and metal inside of the android. "He wrecked it."

"Can you save the main circuit board?"

"Yeah."

Niou put end of the flashlight in his mouth, hovering over the android. He held out his hand, and Marui handed him a pair of wire cutters. Niou stuck his hand inside the metal carcass, and then froze. He looked at Marui, his pale blue eyes asking a question.

"I'm a genius," Marui stated. "Your pinky twitched so I knew you needed wire cutters. Your left ear gets pointy when you need to weld."

Niou's lips stretched up as much as they could with a flashlight in his mouth. He shook his head at Marui's bad joke as he leaned over the robot to get back to work. Marui knew what Niou needed because they had worked together thousands of times, not because he was a genius. It was because they were friends, even if Niou would deny that horrid title of affection.

Marui twirled a screwdriver, knowing Niou would need that next.

.

Yukimura paced the fourth floor balcony with a phone pressed to his ear. The metal creaked beneath his feet. The plants looked wilted and the table needed to be cleaned. It was hot and humid, and the heat made his sweat dampened hair stick to his forehead. The thick air made his insides feel sticky as he inhaled and his tongue heavy as he exhaled.

The phone by his ear beeped – voice mail.

"_Hey, this is Mori Haruka. You know what to do."_

Beep.

"It's me." Yukimura stopped pacing, turned to look over the city, and continued, "Something came up with one of my roommates, and I won't be able to make it tonight. Rain check?" He paused. "I'll see you later."

He closed his phone, pocketing it.

.

**21:59**

The teleportation pads were located to the side of the basement's main room. Key spots throughout the city had been linked to the system, and voice-activated codes determined their destination. However, the system was one way; there were no teleportation pads at their destinations. They couldn't build teleportation pads throughout the city because it would leave their headquarters vulnerable to enemy infiltration. To return to the teleportation pad, they used their remotes, which were kept in their utility belts.

Seven of the heroes were lined on the pads, waiting for their youngest member to come down. If he didn't show, they would leave him behind – those were the rules.

With less than one minute to spare, Kirihara stumbled out of the elevator, holding his domino mask. He jogged over to the teleportation pads, stepping onto the last empty one.

"Sorry," he said as he slipped on his mask. "Had to get someone to cover my shift."

"5-1-19-20-D," Demigod said loudly, not addressing Ace's statement.

The pads glowed blue and they were gone.

They reappeared seconds later behind a series of crates and machinery. They knelt down, and then reached up to press the corner of their masks. The white lenses of their domino masks turned green – night vision.

The crates surrounding them varied in height and color. In the distance was a body of water that reeked and a rundown factory that looked ready to collapse if a gust of wind hit it. The warehouse was two stories and appeared to be almost all metal. Foggy, cracked windows littered the metal sides. The only visible source of light was two flickering yellow lights at the front door where two men in ski masks stood guard with large guns.

They had an hour until the ship carrying the guns was supposed to arrive, but Seigaku would already be set up. If this was as important as Police Chief Fukuda made it sound, at least one of Zero's trusted men would be there. Other than that, they were clueless. There could be two goons, maybe a five dozen. Possibly snipers. They had no idea what to expect. The only thing they knew for sure was that Zero wouldn't be there; he never handled things himself.

"Master, create a telepathic link," Demigod ordered. There was a soft zing, and then Demigod could communicate without speaking. _"Gentleman, fly and analyze the area."_

Gentleman stood up and kicked off the ground. He would be covered by the shadows of the night. Their suits were almost completely black, and they were too far away from the warehouse for any stray colors to be noticed.

"_Trickster, morph yourself so you're invisible, and go to the other side of the crates. Approach the warehouse and use your mask's x-ray lenses to determine who is in charge. I want a count of how many people are inside."_

Trickster smirked. His form shimmered, changing so he was invisible. He moved silently, not making a sound, even as he scaled the stack of hollow crates – or did he walk around? It was like he no longer existed, like he had disappeared off the face of the earth.

"_Tensai, Iron Lung –make your way into the water. When the boat comes, grapple up the side. Try to stop the boat from arriving. If you think you're going to be seen, stay low." _

The two stood, and took off, keeping low, moving quickly along the outer perimeter of the dock towards the water. They pulled breathers out of their utility belts, stuck them into their mouths, and slipped into the water. Their suits would keep them warm until the boats arrived.

"_Ace, you're with us,"_ Demigod thought, looking at the younger hero. _"Gentleman, report."_

"_No snipers, four exits, fifty six windows, no cameras,"_ Gentleman reported. He stayed in the sky, knowing that was where he would be stationed.

"_Trickster, report,"_ Demigod ordered.

"_Only one man is up on the second floor, Demon. The second floor has a gap in the center. It looks like he's giving the orders. Twenty six armed men on the first floor. There are crates everywhere."_

"_Any visible transportation for escape?" _Master questioned.

"_No."_

"_Alright, stay hidden,"_ Demigod thought. _"Heroes – listen. Teleport back to base if you sustain a life threatening injury, and send out a distress call. Keep low, and don't take any unnecessary risks."_

Demigod turned to Ace, Master, and Emperor.

"Now what?" Ace asked.

"We wait," Emperor answered. Ace groaned. Emperor nearly slapped him as he hissed, "And be quiet!"

.

**23:00**

In the distance, three boats were approaching.

With the command from Demigod whispered harshly into the night air – _"go!"_ – the four heroes charged the building. The guards at the front entrance raised their guns, but Ace was faster. He sprinted ahead, grabbed the two by the front of their shirts, and tossed them behind him where they landed in front of Master, who was ready with a can of knock out gas. Master tied the unconscious guards' hands with zip tie cuffs.

The four heroes pressed their backs to the warehouse wall, two on either side of the door. Demigod nodded, and Emperor kicked the door open, his strength buckling the metal. Ace ran inside, and up the stairs on the far side before anyone could even blink. No normal human could follow Ace when he was running with his super speed, meaning the goons would be focused on Master, Emperor, and Demigod and not their leader.

Demigod walked inside and lifted his hands. Any enemy within sight froze. Master appeared with more cuffs, restraining the men, and then knocking them out with gas as an extra precaution.

"We've been breached," Demon reported calmly into a walkie-talkie from the second floor. "All units to the warehouse."

The other three doors flew open as two dozen armed goons ran in. Emperor moved to the nearest door, and engaged the eight men in battle. It wasn't much of a battle considering Emperor was twenty times stronger than any of them regardless of whether or not they had guns.

But that didn't mean the heroes were fighting flawlessly. Goons snuck up from behind, shot at them, grazing their arms or chests. Some woke up from the gas, escaped their cuffs, and attacked again. Even for Master, Emperor, and Demigod the battle wasn't easy. The sheer number of enemies was enough to cause a problem. They could only hope Ace was having an easier time.

.

On the second floor, the youngest hero approached Demon.

"Could you wait a moment?" the mobster asked. He looked back through the gap to the first floor. "The new recruits aren't being trained the way they used to. Half of them can't even shoot properly. It's a shame."

"Shut up and fight!" Ace shouted.

Demon turned to face the hero, his shoulder length hair moving with him. Despite how fragile Demon looked, there was a feeling of utter terror to him. He wore a navy long sleeve shirt and dark jeans. He carried at least ten knives which were concealed in strategic locations on his person in addition to his handheld gun. He wore a mask, and Ace could only imagine what he would see in the man's eyes. Trickster was frightening and his eyes gave Ace an idea of Demon's, but the hero was no sadist.

"If you're in a hurry, I'd be happy to oblige," Demon stated.

Ace growled in frustration. If Demon wanted to play, he'd play.

The hero surged forward, and Demon smiled. The mobster stepped to the side, avoiding Ace's head-on attack.

Ace spun around, using his momentum to his advantage. He slammed into Demon, knocking the villain to the ground. Demon stood up, wiping his dark jeans off with his hands. Demon had to be in pain – a superhuman had just slammed into him – but Ace couldn't see it. The eyes were the windows to the soul and that black mask hide everything.

Ace charged again at full speed. At the last second, he jumped to the side, and came at Demon from a different angle. Demon pivoted, avoiding the attack. He was fast for a human.

Ace swung his fist wildly, remembering how he could take down an android so easily. Demon matched him blow for blow, dodging and returning the hero's superpowered jabs. Ace growled, frustrated, and went for Demon's head.

The mobster ducked, landing a swift blow to Ace's side. The hero stumbled back, hands up in a defensive position.

"My turn," Demon said. He reached to his belt, pulling out a small dagger. He rushed forward, taking Ace by surprise. Ace froze. Demon flung the dagger.

The weapon hit its mark.

The blade dug into ground right next to Ace's foot.

The hero stood like a rock as a moment of realization hit him – Demon could have killed him, and he wouldn't have been able to move. Fear had taken over. He could be dead. He should be dead a million times over.

The next thing to hit Ace was Demon, full force, as their bodies collided. Ace fell with a strangled scream. Demon stood over him, completely unphased.

"Done already?" the mobster asked. He pulled a dagger out of his sleeve, twirling it three times before flicking it out of his grip. It dug into the ground by Ace's head, right next to his ear.

Ace roared and swung out his legs in an attempt to knock Demon down, but Demon was faster. He jumped to the side, pulled a knife from somewhere – Ace hadn't seen where – and tossed it a hair's width away from Ace's neck. The hero went stiff.

"Do you want to keep playing?" Demon asked, approaching Ace, another dagger in his hand.

He didn't wait for an answer. He tossed the weapon, the edge of the blade skimming Ace's side near where his ribcage ended. His suit was cut open, the sharp blade cutting a thin shallow line through his skin. Ace locked his jaw. That stung.

"Is that all?" Demon continued, placing a foot on Ace's stomach. He pressed down, putting more pressure on the hero's wound. He looked at Ace's face, and smiled like he could see the fear that was in his green eyes. "So naïve, so innocent. Did you think you could put on a suit and save the world?"

Demon reached behind him, pulling his gun out of the back of his pants. He pointed it at Ace's head, and then his stomach. Demon took off the safety and –

Ace heard music.

"_You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin' –"_

Ace blinked. Demon smiled and held up a finger. "Excuse me, I need to take this."

The mobster reached into the back pocket of his jeans, and pulled out his cell phone, which was still playing "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees. He turned to the side, examining the fighting below as he pressed his phone to his ear. Only a few goons remained; the heroes were winning.

"Hello. Yes, it's me." After several seconds, Demon turned his gaze back to Ace. "_What?_" Demon's jaw locked as he whirled around, waving his gun haphazardly. "This better not be your first attempt at a joke, because it isn't funny." A pause followed by Demon lowering his gun. "Of course. I understand."

Demon snapped his phone shut, slipped it back into his pocket, and then tucked his gun into the back of his pants. He sent a sickly smile to Ace, and said, "Another time, then?"

"Not in your life," Ace hissed.

Ace sprinted forward at full speed towards Demon. He saw the colors and lights blur around him, and then it came to a stop when Demon grabbed his shoulders. The mobster brought his knee to Ace's gut, and then slammed the hero into the ground. He put his foot on Ace's back.

"Only a fool wishes for death when he has just been granted life." Demon lifted his foot off of Ace's back. "I can't kill you anymore, but I can hurt you, and I would enjoy that more than you could possibly understand. You're lucky I don't have time for you right now."

Demon began to walk away. Ace reached out, grabbing his ankle and squeezing with all his strength. Demon buckled forward as one of his hands wrapped around his back to grab his gun. He twisted his body and pointed it at Ace.

"Chose: hand or shoulder?" Ace squeezed harder, harder, harder. Demon raised the gun. "Hand it is."

The bullet shot out of Demon's gun. Ace let go of Demon's ankle and snapped his hand back. If it had been any other hero, their hand would have a hole in it, but Ace had his speed. Speed which a normal human like Demon could react to, see, and counter. That man was a monster.

The hero looked at the gun, knowing that if he moved he was dead or seriously injured. Demon was a sadist, and meant every threat he said.

Ace focused on the gun in Demon's hand, but could no longer concentrate when he saw three balls roll under Demon's feet. Three gumballs.

Ace waited for three seconds for the delay, and then rolled away from Demon. The timing was perfect. Demon moved his gun to shoot, but the balls exploded in a fog of thick gray smoke before he got the chance.

Ace scrambled to his feet, pressing a hand to his injured side and spotting Tensai as he approached the smoke. His hair was damp, but his suit had already dried itself. The white lenses of his mask were red, infrared. The genius rolled several gumballs in his hand before tossing them into the smoke.

Demon ducked down, and the balls flew through the air, hitting Ace in the center of his chest. A thick putty-like substance oozed over Ace's chest releasing a potent stench that made the hero nauseous. He knew better than to try to wipe it off. It would only cause his hands to stick to the substance.

Demon laughed inside the mass of smoke, "Thanks for fun, heroes, but I have to run."

The mobster sprinted out the edge of the smokescreen, avoiding the series of gumballs Tensai sent his way. Sparks and gases erupted in Demon's wake, but none hit the target. The mobster ran behind a stack of crates. Within seconds, the mobster was gone.

"Uh, Tensai, mind getting me un-gooed?"

Tensai approached the youngest hero. He pulled out a small spray container out of his belt, and pointed it at Ace's chest.

"Are you okay?" Tensai asked. He eyed the cut the side of Ace's suit and the thin line of blood. "Demon's one sick guy."

"I'm fine. Just a scratch and some bruises," Ace answered. "Did you stop the shipment?"

Iron Lung approached from the left. "No."

"The boats were a decoy," Tensai added. "I figured it out after they came into view. Too many guys on the deck for it to be a regular drop off. Most guys guard the cargo underneath."

"So we came here," Iron Lung finished.

"Then where's the delivery?" Ace asked. "Demon wouldn't have been here if there wasn't something going down."

"I'm a genius, not a seer." Tensai pulled the can away from Ace's chest and slipped it into his belt. "You're good."

Ace felt his chest to confirm, and then turned to look at the ground floor. The other heroes were gathering up the goons in piles.

It seemed like a trap, a false report meant to corner the heroes. Master, Emperor, and Demigod were conversing on the ground floor, spitting out theories and ideas and any plausible explanation.

"This doesn't make sense," Iron Lung stated. "Why go through the trouble of a fake shipment?"

"To separate us," Ace reasoned. "We're stronger as a group. Demon knew he couldn't take me if I was with someone else. The bastard probably knows I've been working on my partner work instead of solo..."

"I guess," Jackal responded.

"See, Tensai, I'm not _that _dumb."

"If there are decoys, there's a real target," Tensai muttered, completely ignoring Ace. Tensai's mask stretched as his eyes went wide with realization. He grabbed the railings, and leaned down to shout, "Demigod, the real shipment is still coming! That's why Demon left; he's going to meet the delivery!"

Then they heard the loud buzz of sharp blades cutting through the air. A helicopter was above the warehouse.

Master, Emperor, and Demigod looked up at the ceiling.

"_Gentleman."_ Demigod's voice appeared in their minds instantly._ "Melt the roof open."_

.

Outside the building, Gentleman flew over to the warehouse. A black helicopter was dropping a ladder by the water. A figure, Demon, was climbing the ladder. In the distance, a small motor boat approached the dock, the engine practically silent and the lights nonexistent. If it weren't for the helicopter light, the boat would have been near impossible to detect.

Gentleman ignored Demon and the boat, and pressed his index finger to the center of his mask as if he were pushing up his glasses. The white lenses of his domino masks disappeared. He opened his eyes wide, releasing twin red lasers to the roof of the warehouse. After several seconds, he closed his eyes, and pressed his finger back to his mask. The white reappeared.

A hole large enough for several people had been melted through the metal. Moments after its creation, Emperor used his strength to jump up through the orifice and land on the metal. Demigod appeared seconds later, his eyes closed in concentration as he levitated himself through the air. The leader opened his eyes when his feet touched the metal roof.

"_Gentleman, report,"_ Demigod ordered.

"_Helicopter: weaponry unknown, passengers unknown, Demon entering. Boat approaching."_

Demigod walked along the roof, scanning the area with his binocular-lenses. Then, the team heard his voice. _"Trickster, where are you located?"_

"_The dock."_

"_Swim out and stop the boat."_

Trickster didn't respond.

Demigod walked to the edge of the roof, and held out his hands. "Emperor, I want you to jump up when I stop the helicopter, knock out every man in there, and then cut the ladder."

Emperor nodded.

Demigod closed his eyes, and stretched out his arms.

.

Below on the dock, Trickster slipped into the chilly water. He was still invisible and was silent in the night. He had a small breather in his mouth, allowing him to slip under the surface of the water and breath. It was like he was trained to be like that – silent, invisible, undetectable, deadly.

The water was dark and cloudy during the day. At night, it was near impossible to see. He felt like he was swimming through toxic waste. But he didn't need to see. The boat had set its course, and its speed was constant. It took his mind mere seconds to determine where that boat would be and where he would meet it.

He resurfaced when the boat was fifty feet away. He pulled out his breather and returned it to his utility belt. He grabbed his grappling hook and waited until the boat was close to him. He could make himself invisible, but inanimate objects weren't his area of expertise. His suit was the one non-living thing he could change. Once he lifted his arm to aim the hook, he could be spotted. He only had one chance, but that was all he needed.

He lifted his invisible arm out of the water, and shot the hook at the boat. It latched onto the side, and with the press of a button, he was being reeled to the boat.

The boat was small, and occupied by three mean in all black. Not Seigaku attire. Something else. Several crates were tied to the back with dozens of warnings stamped to the sides in several languages. Trickster recognized a few – danger, warning, biohazard, fragile.

Two men stood where his grappling hook was latched on, but they wouldn't see Trickster, not when he was invisible. Once he had one hand on the edge of the boat and the men had turned their backs, he dropped the hook and crawled in.

Trickster moved like a black snake in the inky night. He ducked between the two men, slithering up behind them. He raised his arms, and gently tapped a spot on their necks with the sides of his hands. They fell like rocks.

Trickster repeated the motion to the driver, pushed the man to the side, and sat in front of the controls.

.

Demigod held his arms out perpendicular to his torso. He sucked in a deep breath as he closed his eyes, and shut down the engine of the helicopter. The blades whirled to a stop, but the machine didn't fall.

Emperor jumped up with his strength through the open door. Two men put guns in his face. He grabbed the barrels, tore the guns from the men's hands, and then grabbed their shoulders. He knocked their heads together, and they fell to the metal floor with a thump.

He turned to the pilot who didn't have a gun. Emperor reached into his utility belt, pulled out a can of knock out gas, and approached the shaking man. Emperor wasn't so cruel as to hit an unarmed man. He sprayed a mist in front of him, and within seconds the pilot's head hit the control board.

Emperor turned to the edge of the helicopter where the ladder was hooked. Demon was half way up, a breather in his mouth. He knew the ladder would be cut, and he would get away. Emperor knew he should have dragged the ladder up, knocked the man out, taken him in for interrogation, but an order was an order. He grabbed the top of the ladder, and ripped the rope with his hands.

Demon fell down into the water. Emperor knew that wouldn't be the last of him.

The hero jumped out of the helicopter, landing on the roof. Demigod moved his hands, the helicopter lowering to the dock. When Demigod opened his eyes, he spotted a boat coming in from sea without a driver. Rather, a boat with an invisible driver.

Trickster turned the boat off at the end of the dock near the back of the warehouse, tossing the rope onto a worn-out wooden post. He stepped out onto the dock, his body coming back into view. His white hair was damp and pushed out of his face; his black suit was dry.

Master, Emperor, and Demigod moved to the dock and approached Trickster. The other heroes stayed inside of the warehouse to watch over the unconscious goons and wait for farther instructions.

"Do you know the contents of the crates?" Emperor asked, looking at the boat.

"Demon escaped," Trickster said, not answering the question. "He entered the water, but I wasn't able to pick him up on infrared."

"The crates?" Emperor pressed.

"How should I know?"

"Teleport back to base and contact Fukuda," Demigod ordered. "Tell him to send his men. Then clear a space for the boxes."

Trickster grabbed his remote and teleported.

"I thought we were sharing our information with the police," Master commented once the white haired hero was gone.

"I want Fukuda to keep this city safe. That doesn't mean he or his men have my complete confidence," Demigod stated. "It's imperative that we discover Seigaku's plans and stop them. I only trust myself and the others with that task. The police will never know we found these crates."

.

**The Warehouse  
May 20, 1:57**

The seven other heroes teleported back to base when the police showed up. The goons were tied up, and even the police could handle a situation as easy as that. They took the chemicals with them, placing them in the basement for the time being.

Sanada cleaned and patched up Kirihara's side with a large bandage, lecturing him for allowing the fight to escalate the way it did. Kirihara murmured that it was part of the plan, that he was supposed to take Demon down, that it was his job. Sanada tore off the large bandage when he said that, causing Kirihara to whimper in pain. The younger man kept his mouth shut as Sanada put on a new bandage.

Yanagi and Yagyuu were in a side room used for medical treatments as Yanagi examined Yagyuu's eyes. Using his laser vision was always risky. The organization that had kept them captive for eight years nearly worked Yagyuu's eyes to the point of blindness. Any use of his laser vision was a calculated risk he understood.

There were identical three medical rooms. The rooms were stark white and bear of any luxuries. A metal frame with a stiff mattress was pushed into the right corner. Restraints were attached to the beds in case Kirihara lost control and Yukimura's psychic abilities weren't enough to calm him. The lights were bright and harsh.

Yagyuu currently sat on one bed, his body turned slightly so Yanagi, who was sitting next to him, could press a scope to his eyes.

"There doesn't appear to be any deterioration, as I expected," Yanagi said. He set the scope down into a black bag that sat on the floor. "You're fine."

Yagyuu nodded, stood, and left the room. When he entered the main room of the basement, he walked over to where the other heroes were. Yanagi joined them after storing the medical kit in its proper place.

On a metal table sat the contents of one crate. The boxes contained bottles of chemicals and strange substances. Marui examined the bottles and the variety of colored liquids and solids they contained. He lifted a box shaped jar with a blue powder, shook it, and then set it back down.

"Do you recognize any of them?" Yukimura asked.

Marui was completing a graduate degree in chemistry. In addition to his super intelligence, he knew practically everything about chemicals. But when he turned to face his leader, his face only showed confusion.

"I don't know what most of that stuff is. A few things are basic stabilizing compounds. But the rest... Nothing I've ever worked with. It's almost like someone bonded atoms that aren't meant to be bonded."

"So you don't have damn a clue?" Kirihara asked.

Marui shook his head. Yukimura looked at Niou, who looked back at Yukimura like he was insane. "I work with wires and metal, not chemicals."

Yukimura sighed. "Is anything of this dangerous, Marui?"

"None of that stuff is radioactive; we'd be sick or dead if it was. Could mixing that green liquid with those pink crystals blow up the city? I don't know."

"Can you figure out what it is?" Sanada pressed. "If Seigaku needed these chemicals, they're necessary for something."

"I'd need to run some experiments in the lab to see what reacts with what. If I use substances I'm familiar with in the tests I should be able to isolate what chemicals are present."

"I should be able to help," Yanagi said. "My knowledge of chemical compounds should be sufficient to safely run the tests."

Yukimura nodded. "Alright. We'll work out the specifics tomorrow. Everyone retire for the night. I want you all rested for tomorrow. Seigaku won't be happy with us so patrol's going to be harsh."

The heroes made their way to the elevator. Yukimura stayed behind, placing his hands on the table with the chemicals. Sanada stood outside the elevator for a moment, as if he were debating staying with his leader, but eventually joined the others. The elevator doors creaked shut as the metal box rose to the fourth floor.

Yukimura ran a hand through his hair.

Seigaku's goons were robbing banks for money. High level members were being spotted in the southern district. The members never instigated violent behavior, and left the district without a fight. Now chemicals – presumably bought with the stolen money – were being shipped in.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

* * *

**A/N: Review?**


	6. Attacked

**The Warehouse  
May 25, 21:32**

Jackal jabbed his fist into the sand bag's side. He kept light on his feet swinging his arms out like the deadly weapons they were as he ducked and dodged around the bag. He was more adept at fighting in real scenarios with SAM, but he adapted to the bag easily enough.

Yukimura stood a safe distance away as he watched his teammate swing and punch. Like Yanagi and Marui, Jackal had to learn alternative ways of fighting. Yanagi invaded the enemy's mind. Marui used weapons. Jackal used his fists. Jackal couldn't be hurt, but that didn't mean he couldn't be incapacitated or restrained. He had to stay on his toes in a fight, had to train himself so he could fight back. He worked because he didn't have natural strength like Sanada or Kirihara.

Sweat rolled down the line of Jackal's nose into his eye. He winced, grabbing the bag so he didn't get knocked down when it swung back.

"Watch your left," Yukimura advised. "You're leaving yourself open once every five jabs. Doctor would realize that and exploit it. Fighting with SAM will help fix that."

Jackal nodded. He brought one of his wrapped hands up to his face and brushed drops of sweat off of his forehead.

Yukimura turned his attention to the circle in the center of the gym. SAM, their simulated assault machine that Kirihara had accidentally broken, had been disassembled. Niou and Marui sat in the middle of the scattered parts pointing at a set of blueprints and arguing.

The two were geniuses. Niou came by his intelligence naturally like Yanagi while Marui's was created during the explosion. They were giving SAM a huge upgrade – new scenarios, weapon usage, human intelligence, and other things that made the rest of the heroes' brains melt. If anyone in the world could do it, it was the hacker and the super genius.

"When will you two be finished?" Yukimura asked.

"Another week," Marui answered.

"Six days," Niou corrected.

"I was approximating," Marui snapped.

"I would rather have it take two weeks than have you two kill each other in the process," Yukimura said. He looked at Jackal and sighed. "Boys and their toys."

Jackal smiled wearily at his leader.

Then, Yukimura's cell phone rang.

.

**Rikkaidai City, Eastern District**

"I'm stuck at a crime scene in the eastern district. Dead cop," Sanada said into his phone. Kobayashi hovered by the car behind him, fighting with his tie in the wind. "I'll probably be pulling an all nighter."

"All right," Yukimura responded. "We'll swing by some of Seigaku's hang outs during patrol to see if we can find anything. Was the cop anyone important?"

Sanada glanced at Kobayashi. The detective had his arms crossed over his chest in some attempt to keep his tie tamed. A strong gust of wind hit them, drawing a shiver from Kobayashi and causing the bottom of his tie to flap. Sanada had been smart enough to remove his tie before they came out to the scene.

Sanada turned his gaze back to the yellow tape separating him and a dead comrade.

"No," Sanada answered. "I need to go."

"Tell your partner I said hello."

"No."

Sanada hung up, slipping his cell phone in the back pocket of his pants.

"Girlfriend?" Kobayashi questioned.

"Roommate." Kobayashi nodded, sliding his hands into his pockets. Sanada knew the look on his partner's face and what it meant. Sanada added, "Not like that."

Kobayashi shrugged. "You're young. Can't blame me for asking."

Sanada began to walk away from Kobayashi's black hybrid towards the yellow crime scene tape. He held up the tape, allowing Kobayashi to duck under. Sanada followed.

The coroner had already cleared them to examine the scene. Forensics had done a run through earlier. The patrol car that had answered the car had already left and returned to the station. It was just the two of them and a dead body in a dark alley between two brick buildings. The fire escapes were pulled up and garbage littered the worn-out black asphalt. It was dark, the only light coming from flickering street lights and cheap police lamps.

Another gust of wind whipped at their backs as they knelt in front of the body. The cop was wearing his patrol uniform. He appeared to be in pursuit of someone because his car was found several blocks away. Whoever he was chasing seemed to have gotten the upper hand at some point. The bullet went straight to the head. A pool of blood encased the asphalt around his head. Ten feet away, a police marker pointed out the bullet, which had dug itself into a brick wall. Sanada could smell the blood.

Kobayashi knelt next to the body and shook his head in disappointment. How many dead cops did that make for the week and how many people in total? Kobayashi was still shaken up from a case earlier that week that involved a murdered mother and child. Sanada was surprised Kobayashi even showed up to work after that one.

"Where was his partner?" Kobayashi asked. Patrol cars almost always had two officers.

"He was off duty," Sanada said. "It appears as though he was on his way home when he saw someone and pursed."

Kobayashi's face hardened, but he didn't respond. He reached out and unzipped the victim's windbreaker to reveal his uniform. It was clean and crisp, his gun still on his hip. There was a small square paper pinned to the man's shirt.

"I thought forensics was already here," Kobayashi said.

"They were."

"Even those idiots aren't dumb enough to miss that. Fuji's been riding their asses to get every piece of evidence so we can get those Seigaku bastards."

Sanada's only response was a small grunt in the back of this throat that didn't leave his mouth. He checked the victim's pockets. There was nothing left, not even a ball of lint, which meant forensics had definitely been there. They would have taken the note. Sanada began to calculate how much time there was between forensics leaving and him and Kobayashi showing up. Enough for someone close by to stick a note to the guy's chest.

Sanada unpinned the paper and flipped it. Written in neat, precise letters was:

_Don't let your guard down.  
-Zero_

Sanada realized his partner had become uncharacteristically silent. Kobayashi Riku was a man of words – perhaps not the best words, but words nonetheless. Sanada glanced at the older man, and saw panic in his brown eyes.

"Don't move," Kobayashi ordered through the corner of his mouth. "Sniper."

Sanada moved his eyes down to look at his chest. A single red dot was on his left breast, marking him as prey. It had to be Moon. They were in Seigaku territory and if Zero had left that note, that meant his men were't far behind. If Moon had marked them, there was no escape.

He needed to contact Yanagi, but there wasn't an established mental link. He couldn't think and expect his teammates to hear him, and he certainly couldn't reach for his cell phone. He was alone on this one. With Kobayashi there, he had to play the part, too, which meant no powers. Not that his powers were useful against ranged-attackers. Strength was only useful if he was close enough to use it.

He had to think of a plan and fast. Hero patrol began in half an hour and there was no guarantee they would come to the eastern district first, let alone see Sanada and Kobayashi. Moon was another problem. Wherever Moon went, Feline was sure to follow. Sanada could easily take them on, perhaps even one-on-two, but with Kobayashi around he wasn't feeling as confident. Why did humans have to be so weak?

Another gust of wind snapped at the detectives. Kobayashi's brown eyes lit up like fireworks. "Wait for a gust of wind," the older man said. "I'm guessing that's Moon, one of Zero's best snipers. Even the best snipers can't predict when the wind comes. When you feel a strong gust, duck. Hug the dead guy for all I care. Just get low. He'll shoot when you move and the wind will wreck his aim."

"Then what?"

"I haven't thought about that yet. Run?"

"Good enough for me."

Sanada didn't dare move until a strong gust of wind hit him. When it did, he ducked, his body almost flush with the ground. He pocketed the note. A shot was fired, the bullet zooming over his hunched back. He kept low, but ran. Kobayashi followed.

The two heard another shot and dove down another branch of the alley to dodge it. They pressed their backs to the bricks, hearts racing. The car was fifty feet away, if that, but it was still too risky. Walking straight in Moon's line of vision was a suicide mission. They both reached to their belts and pulled their guns out of their holsters. They undid the safety, and held them near their waists with both hands.

Sanada reached into his back pocket with one hand, pulling out his phone. He hit a speed dial. Another shot fired followed by his cellphone being blown out of his hand.

"Go! _Run!_" Kobayashi shoved on Sanada's shoulder, getting him to turn. Kobayashi repeated the order to run. Sanada ran alongside Kobayashi, controlling his muscles and putting a cap on his strength and speed. He wasn't as fast as Kirihara, but he could get going if he had the proper leverage, like asphalt, beneath his feet.

They twisted around a turn, nearly sliding like characters in a cartoon chase. Moon was calm, precise; he would run from building to building, he would wait for his chance. That meant they had to hide. But there was no where to hide when you were in Moon's territory.

Everything seemed to blur. It never blurred when he was Emperor, when he knew he could use his powers, when he knew he had his team behind his back. When he was a mere human running alongside a man who he was supposed to trust with his life, he realized how terrifying alone he was. His heart was racing and his palms were sweating because this was different. He wasn't Emperor, he was Sanada Genchirou, alone and very much in danger.

It was Sanada who nearly tripped on a beer bottle because Kobayashi jerked down a small branch of the alley. It was Sanada who felt nauseous as they ran past a putrid dumpster. It was Sanada who wished he had told Yukimura where he was. It was Sanada who was debating whether or not his life was worth exposing his secret identity. It was Sanada who stayed besides Kobayashi.

They came to point where the alley branched off in two different directions. They could circle back or risk finding a dead end or hope one led to the street. When Kobayashi took off at a sprint, Sanada knew it was a mistake. The area was too open. There were no fire escapes, no dumpsters, nothing to block Moon's aim.

"Get dow_–"_

Sanada never finished. He heard a bullet fire and then Kobayashi scream.

Sanada pushed off using his full strength, grabbed the back of Kobayashi's collar, and sprinted straight ahead. He didn't care that Kobayashi had dropped his gun or that he had no idea where he was going. He had to get out of the open and look at Kobayashi. He had to get away from Moon.

He took a sharp right and continued halfway down the straight stretch. After several seconds he slowed, stopped by a dumpster, and set Kobayashi his back was against the bricks. Sanada reasoned Moon would need to reposition and that gave them a bit of time.

Kobayashi's face was paling from shock or blood loss, probably a little bit of both. He had obviously been hit, but his dark jacket hid the exact location. It didn't appear to be at the center of his chest, which was good because that almost certainly guarantee death. Sanada needed to see where he was shot and to put pressure on the wound, but first he had to keep Kobayashi from passing out.

"Come on," Sanada murmured, gently slapping Kobayashi's pale white face three times. He sheathed his gun, using both hands to slap the man's cheeks. "Talk."

"Don't touch my face," Kobayashi croaked.

"Good. Keep talking."

"You're usually telling me to shut up. That was a joke, get it? Ha ha."

"It was a bad joke."

Sanada took off Kobayashi's coat, searching for a slick red spot on his dress shirt. He spotted it on Kobayashi's right shoulder. Sanada tilted Kobayashi's body forward, pressing a hand to the other side. He felt blood and realized this was bad. Shoulder injuries could become very dangerous very fast. Add in the fact that they were being hunted by an expert marksman and Kobayashi's blood was pumping fast from adrenaline, and that wound was definitely lethal.

Sanada undid Kobayashi's tie and shoved it to the front side of the wound. Kobayashi lifted his left hand and slipped it under Sanada's to apply the pressure.

"Straight through?" Kobayashi asked. Sanada nodded. The older man's head fell back against the wall. "Not good, Sanada, not good."

Sanada stood up without responding. He approached the black dumpster and tried his best to ignore the retched stench. He moved one end of it away from the wall, creating a little nook. Moving a full dumpster with rusted wheels wasn't something a normal human could do, but Kobayashi was losing blood and fast, and Sanada didn't have time to worry about being exposed. Kobayashi couldn't run. Sanada had to hid him and go get help. Moon would follow a moving target.

Sanada knelt in front of Kobayashi, slipping the older man's good arm over his shoulder. Sanada kept his tie pressed to his wound and half-walked, half-dragged Kobayashi over to the dumpster. He set Kobayashi down and made sure he was holding his tie right over the wound. Due it its location, there wasn't much he could do about the back.

"I'm going to get help," Sanada said. He turned to run without restraint, but felt a hand wrap around his wrist. He turned, staring at Kobayashi, who was holding onto his wrist with his free hand. Kobayashi's arm dropped when Sanada's eyes met his. Sanada had never seen his partner look so serious.

"Listen, if you get hurt or I die–"

"No, _you_ listen," Sanada cut in. "You're going to live. You're going to see your wife smile and then you'll watch her give birth to your child. I'll have to listen to you talk about the kid and you'll torture the entire department with weekly photo updates. You'll make bad jokes and we'll laugh anyways. You'll walk into work with powdered sugar from a doughnut on your shirt even though you're supposed to be on a diet.

"You're a stubborn fool, Kobayashi. Don't change now."

Sanada turned and took off. Even with his strength he didn't make a sound. He was silent like a forest on windless afternoon. He didn't think about the eerie silence, or Kobayashi, or anything as he ran. His mind was set on one thing: getting the man who shot his partner.

Sanada reached a fire escape and yanked it down. The metal clattered and squeaked as he climbed towards the top of the building. It was time to make this an even fight; both of them could see each other out in the open. He pulled himself onto the cement roof and turned around in search of a silhouette.

He heard a shot and jumped to the side. He twisted his body to face the direction the bullet came from. He spotted the source at the edge of the building. Moon had his rifle set up on a three-legged stand. He wore a black long sleeved shirt and dark pants. A black mask covered his eyes from Sanada's deadly gaze.

"I'm not sure whether coming up here is brave or stupid," Moon admitted.

"I swore an oath to protect this city and promised my partner's wife I would protect him," Sanada stated. He felt like his blood was boiling with rage as he stepped forward. He felt sturdy, immovable, as he approached the sharpshooter. A fire had invaded his mind and it was too late to put out the flames.

"The heroes protect this city, too," Moon added. "But where are they? Where are the cops when someone cuts corners on a nuclear power plant? Where are this city's true heroes?"

Sanada froze. "The police force doesn't approve of the actions of outlaws."

"I wonder," Moon continued, ignoring Sanada's statement, "if the heroes were to show up, would Emperor be with them?"

Moon's words dug into Sanada's gut like a bullet. The mobster had mentioned the power plant, had suspected he was Emperor _– _Moon knew. And if Moon knew, then Seigaku knew. How? _How?_

Sanada dug his feet into the ground and ran forward. Moon fired a shot, but the bullet froze in mid air. Sanada stopped dead in his tracks as Master, Emperor, and Demigod appeared in front of him.

"Sorry for our tardiness," Demigod said over his shoulder to Sanada. He turned his head and looked at Moon. "My teammates are seeing to the injured cop and we won't let you kill anyone tonight. You've lost, Moon. You can either run along or wait for the police copters to show up. You're choice."

Even with the mask, it was obvious Moon was looking at Emperor. After a moment of silence, he said, "Feline," and took a step back. He fell off the roof, but didn't fall far. Master ran forward and saw Moon get on a motorcycle with Feline. The two drove off, the black machine weaving in and out of the alley passages.

Sanada walked forward and grabbed Emperor's shoulder. When the hero turned, Sanada felt like he was staring into a mirror. Trickster had copied his image perfectly down to the small scar on his chin that was barely visible.

"Your partner is probably being looked at by the paramedics right now," Demigod stated. Sanada nodded in understanding. The area could have bugs and there were cameras. As far as Sanada knew, that really was Emperor. "We will escort you to the police. I'm assuming Fukuda will want to question you."

Sanada nodded.

.

There were two ambulances and more than a dozen police cars. Dozens of reporters stood on the other side of the yellow tape, pressing microphones into any face that passed by. The heroes were standing in the shadows, examining the body of the officer who had been shot. Sanada saw Master pocket the note left by Zero.

Kobayashi was alive for now. He was taken to the hospital. The paramedics refused to let Sanada ride along, insisting he needed to be checked out as well. So Sanada sat on the back of the ambulance, allowed them to wrap a neon orange shock blanket around him, and let two strangers take his vitals.

Police Chief Fukuda and Mayor Nakano were present and giving statements. Demigod approached the line of reporters, spotting a familiar face amongst the crowd. She was wearing a plum dress and was dolled up. She had her camera and a pad of paper, a pencil shoved into the metal spine. He stood in front of Mori, talking to her as other reporters gathered around.

"Tonight is proof that the cops and officers of this city are the true heroes."

Demigod turned, glanced at Sanada, and then joined the heroes. They walked to the back of the alley, disappearing one by one as they teleported back to the warehouse.

.

**The Warehouse  
May 26, 2:54**

Sanada stepped out of the elevator as he cracked his neck. The familiar smell of pizza drifted out of the kitchen and went straight to his stomach. He could hear the television and noise from his teammates on the other side of the common room. He walked over, sat down in the empty spot on the sofa next to Yukimura, and tried to remember which _Spiderman_ movie was playing. Niou wasn't present. Neither was Yagyuu. Jackal, Marui, and Kirihara were sitting on the floor, completely engrossed in the movie.

"Is your partner okay?" Yukimura asked, waving his hand. A piece of olive pizza floated out of the kitchen until it was hovering in front of Sanada. The detective took the piece of pizza, but didn't take a bite. He was starving but could not find it in him to eat.

"He should be," Sanada answered. "How did you know where to go?"

"I was in the lab and the communicator said the tracker in your phone was destroyed," Yanagi explained. "We traced your phone to its last known location."

Sanada nodded. He took a bite of piece, immediately regretting it. It seemed to swim in his stomach. "Moon knew. At least, he thought he knew."

"Knew what?"

"My identity."

Yanagi and Yukimura looked at the three heroes on the floor. Marui was probably listening it despite the rule about no powers in the common room. Sanada was the one who took the greatest care in hiding his identity. There was no chance that he slipped up. So how did Moon know?

"Why was Trickster morphed as me?"

"Master, Emperor, and Demigod always go on patrol together," Yanagi answered. "It would be suspicious if one of us was missing. Trickster can become invisible _– _it's easy to explain his absence."

Sanada nodded and said, "I'm going to bed." He put the piece of pizza in the trash, headed up the stairs, and closed the door behind him. He knew it would be a sleepless night, but that was alright. One more night of staring at the ceiling wouldn't kill him.

.

**Rikkaidai City Central Hospital  
May 29, 12:34**

Sanada never liked hospitals. They reminded him of times he would rather forget. The white walls, the sounds, the smells – it was so similar to _that_ place. He clutched his fingers around the brown bag in his left hand as he walked towards Kobayashi's room.

The door to Kobayashi's room was open. The detective was sitting up, poking halfheartedly at the food on the tray in front of him. He was wearing a seafoam gown and had an IV in his hand. His wife, Mei, sat in a chair with her back to the door. From what Sanada could see, she was trying to force feed him green jell-o.

Mei was a petite woman when compared to her well-built husband, but she had the personality to make up for it. She was stubborn as a bull. She claimed to be a lover not a fighter, but that was only because she was more passive-aggressive than Yukimura. That woman was a terror when she needed to be.

Sanada knocked on the door frame with his free hand. Mei turned and smiled kindly at him. She had short, straight hair with blue eyes.

"Sanada," she said. "It's good to see you."

"It's about time. I thought you were never going to show," Kobayashi stated. "Come in. Maybe you could eat my jell-o so the nurses can stop tearing me a new one for not eating. It's not my fault this food is meant for dogs."

Sanada walked in and pulled up a chair to sit next to Mei. She was wearing a loose fitting shirt that hid the small bump on her stomach. Sanada had to think about how far along she was – nearly four months. It was strange to think that eventually, in a few more months, that bump would become their child. Life was a strange thing.

He sat the brown bag on Kobayashi's tray. The detective grabbed it, ripping it open. He pulled out a raspberry filled powdered doughnut and took a huge bite. Mei sighed and turned to her husband's partner.

"I've been meaning to call, but it's been hard," she admitted.

"It's perfectly alright, Mrs. Kobayashi."

"Please, call me Mei. You saved my husband's life. You deserve to be on good terms with me. In fact, I don't think I've given you a proper thank you so _thank you_." She leaned over a placed a kiss on his cheek. She turned her attention back to Kobayashi, frowning. "Riku, you have powder all over your face."

"I'm dying. I deserve comfort food," Kobayashi said jokingly through a mouthful of doughnut and filling. Mei gently tapped her husband's leg – "You're being released tonight; you're not dying" – while Sanada smiled. Kobayashi's eyes went wide as he pointed at Sanada. "Who are you and what have you done with my partner?"

Sanada's smile disappeared. "I am capable of smiling, you know."

"I've never seen you do it before," Kobayashi said matter-of-factly.

Mei tapped her husband's leg again, looked at Sanada, and then sighed, "He's impossible."

"I know."

Everything was alright if only for a minute.

* * *

**A/N: Leave me a review to tell me what you thought?**


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